Rash Decisions, Fatal Consequences
by twilight is an obsession
Summary: Bella finds something that makes her question why Edward left her. So she goes to try to find him. But will someone else find her first? Not the traditional Edward leaves, then they get back together story, theres a twist! Read and find out;
1. Chapter 1: Bittersweet Memories

**AN: This is my first story so please bear with me. Review if you want me to continue, if not, I may be like all those other stupid authors and just stop writing. I need to know if anyone's reading this.**

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer is a literary genius. I am just a slightly above average high school student. Even though I want to be a novelist and hope to be as brilliant as her someday, I am under no circumstances her so these characters and much of the story besides the basic plot is NOT MINE! (Just for those of you who are dumb enough to think otherwise.)

Anywho…

**STORY TIME!!!!**

Chapter 1: Bittersweet Memories

BPOV

After Edward left, I did nothing for weeks. I ate, I slept, and I went to school. I answered direct questions, but never engaged in any conversation myself. He was gone. I kept telling myself to just accept that and move on, but I knew that I wasn't Bella anymore. I was just an empty shell of what I used to be. I had always known that it didn't make sense for him to love me, but I had desperately hoped that I was wrong. But then he had to go and prove me right. He didn't even leave anything for me to remember him by.

I woke up to the sound of birds chirping. A happy sound, giving false hope to those in the world who hope for a happy day. I knew that I would never find happiness again. And yet, I couldn't find it in me to be angry with Edward. How could I? He was just too perfect for me, and he inevitably got bored. I climbed out of bed and made my way to take a shower. When I returned to my bedroom, part of me expected to see him sitting there waiting for me. Even after a month of his absence, I still had a hard time breaking the routines I had become so used to.

I walked towards my dresser to grab my clothes for another monotonous school day, when I tripped over something on the floor by my bed and stumbled. I thought nothing of it and went to pick out my clothes for the day, just another t-shirt and pair of jeans. I had never put much effort into my appearance before, but now I made even less of an effort to look good. What did it matter anyway? Who did I need to look good for now that Edward was gone?

Once I had pulled on my clothes, I turned to grab my bag when my eyes were drawn to the floor and I noticed what I had tripped on earlier. One of my floorboards was sticking up out of the floor. Confused, I went and removed it as far from the floor as I could and peeked under it. A gasp escaped my mouth as I looked closer. Tears pricked at my eyes, as I recognized the things that Edward had taken from me when he left. My memories of him.

I pulled out the first picture of Edward, and my mind went back to the day I had taken it.

"_Nice save," Charlie noted. "If they're doing something fun at the Cullens' tonight, Bella, you should take some pictures. You know how your mother gets--- she'll be wanting to see the pictures faster than you can take them."_

"_Good idea, Charlie," Edward said, handing me the camera._

_I turned the camera on Edward, and snapped the first picture. "It works." (New Moon p.22)_

I let out a strangled laugh at the memory, the first time I'd laughed in a really long time and pulled out the next thing, the tickets Carlisle and Esme had gotten for Edward and I to go to Florida to see Renee. Yet another thing from my fateful birthday party.

_I picked up the long flat rectangle that must have been from Carlisle and Esme. _

"_Allow me," Edward suggested. He took the gift from my hand and tore the silver paper off with one fluid movement. He handed the rectangular white box back to me._

"_Are you sure I can handle lifting the lid?" I muttered, but he ignored me. _

_Inside the box was a long thick piece of paper with an overwhelming amount of fine print. It took me a minute to get the gist of the information._

"_We're going to Jacksonville?" And I was excited, in spite of myself. It was a voucher for plane tickets, for both me and Edward. (New Moon p. 48)_

Seeing those plane tickets tugged at the hole in my heart as I realized that we would never get a chance to use these, would never be able to go to Jacksonville together. But there was one thing left, and it was the thing that meant more to me than anything else there. The one thing that I had missed hearing so much the past few months.

_I set the tickets aside and reached for his present, my curiosity rekindled. He took it from me and unwrapped it like the first one._

_He handed back a clear CD jewel case, with a blank silver CD inside._

"_What is it?" I asked, perplexed._

_He didn't say anything; he took the CD and reached around me to put it in the CD player on the bedside table. He hit play, and we waited in silence. Then the music began. (New Moon pg. 48-49)_

Placing the CD in my stereo, I turned it on and laid on my bed. When my lullaby began to play, the tears began running our of my eyes full force. It felt good to cry. All this time since Edward had left, I hadn't cried once. I had just been empty, but I hadn't cried. My grief was so deep that my body didn't even bother to cry, knowing that it wouldn't have made a difference either way. A thought pricked at my mind, and I ran to my scrapbook that I had gotten from my mother, and I turned to the first page, with the missing space for Edward's picture and replaced it there. My mind going back to when I realized all these things were gone.

_Someone had been in the house to leave a note for Charlie, a note that would lead him to find me. From the minute that I'd realized this, a horrible suspicion began to grow in my head. I rushed to my room, shutting and locking the door behind me before I ran to the CD player by my bed._

_Everything looked exactly the same as I'd left it. I pressed down on the top of the CD player. The latch unhooked, and the lid slowly swung open._

_It was empty._

_The album Renee had given me sat on the floor beside the bed, just where I'd put it last. I lifted the cover with a shaking hand. _

_I didn't have to flip any farther than the first page. The little metal corners no longer held a picture in place. The page was blank except for my own handwriting scrawled across the bottom: Edward Cullen, Charlie's kitchen, Sept. 13__th_

_I stopped there. I was sure that he would have been very thorough._

_It will be as if I'd never existed, he'd promised me. (New Moon pg. 83-84)_

What did this mean? He had promised me no reminders of him ever, but if he didn't want me to be reminded of him, why would he have hid those things in the floorboards, where I could've easily found them, and if I hadn't already, I would've eventually, I'm fairly sure. Maybe he just wanted to torture me, to remind me that he didn't love me anymore. No. I thought fiercely. He may not love me anymore, but that didn't change his nature. He was much too caring of others to just do something like that to me, even if he didn't love me anymore. Besides, if anything, he did say that he would always love me in his own way, so I don't believe that he would try to hurt me this way.

Another thought pricked at my subconscious. Maybe… maybe he did still love me. Maybe he secretly wanted me to remember him, he didn't want himself out of my life forever. A disbelieving laugh escaped my throat as I thought of the possibility. Yes, maybe that's it. He still loves me. And I made a decision right then. I was going to find Edward, and learn the truth.

No matter what it took.

**AN: I know I used a lot of quotes from New Moon, so this may not seem much like my own work. But I promise this was like a one time only thing. She will continue to have flashbacks, but not nearly as many. This was mostly to get the story started.**


	2. Chapter 2: Difficult Escape

**AN: When I write, I tend to like to write a lot… that first chapter was really short for me… but let me know if you would like me to write long chapters less often or short chapters and update more… however I don't think that it will make too huge of a difference in the timing because once I start something I tend to like to finish it quickly. I'm going to write this one not too long and hopefully not too short, just in case. That's all.**

Disclaimer: Do you think I'm Stephenie Meyer? If you said yes, I'm flattered that you think so highly of my writing skills, but I'm kind of wondering if you're stupid because I already said last chapter that I most definitely am not. Just thought I'd let you know. So… I'm rambling. Summary: I don't own anything.

Chapter 2: Difficult Escape

BPOV

Okay. So finding Edward? Yea, not as easy as I might have made it sound, I realized after a few minutes of thinking about what I was going to do. He was a vampire for god's sake. A vampire who doesn't _want_ to be found, as far as I know. I mean, if he had wanted to be found, he might have, I don't know, left a freaking map or something.

First, I needed to consider where I should go first. _Where would be the most logical place for Edward to go? _I asked myself. After a few moments of consideration, I realized that he could go anywhere. I had no way of finding him that way. So I scratched that question from my mind and asked a different one. _Okay then, where could I go where someone might know where Edward was?_ I thought about that for a moment and realized that was a question that I could answer. One word popped into my mind.

Denali.

Wouldn't Tanya and the other Denali vampires possibly have an idea of where the Cullens were? They were friends after all. In that instant, I had made my decision. I was going to go to Denali to find out where the Cullens had gone. I had to. Even if I was wrong and Edward _didn't _still love me, I was not going to stay here and wonder for the rest of my life. I had to know for sure. If he still told me he didn't love me, well then I was just going to leave him be. No matter how much it killed me. I could handle the pain, so long as he was happy.

But I was getting ahead of myself. I would deal with that when it came to it. For now, I only had to concentrate on tracking an incredibly fast vampire across the country when he may or may not want to be found. Sure. No problem.

First things first, however. Jacob. I needed to tell him where I was going. He wouldn't approve, of course, but I needed to find Edward. The only reason that I was telling him in the first place was that the werewolves down at the Quileute reservation would probably freak out if I disappeared while Victoria was on the loose.

Oh no.

I had forgotten Victoria. If I left Forks, I wouldn't be protected from Victoria any longer. And it was going to take some time to track down Edward, some of which might be spent alone and vulnerable, where she could easily find me.

All I needed to do was decide which was more important: finding Edward, or being kept safe from Victoria. Yet I had known the answer to that question before I had even asked it. I needed to find Edward.

Jake would try to stop me, I know he would. He seems convinced that if Edward doesn't come back, I'll forget about Edward and fall for him. He think that he could make me happy. Poor Jake, if only he knew the truth. If I ended up with him, I'd only be settling. He could never make me as happy as Edward could. I loved Jake, but Edward had left me irreversibly altered, and I could not bring myself to love Jake in the way he wanted me to, as any more than a best friend.

Still, I at least owed him a call. I could get away before he could do anything to stop me. Sighing, I grabbed my things and began shoving them into my bag. I had no idea how long I'd be gone, so I just packed enough clothes for a few days, and retrieved the sock containing my meager college fund. Hopefully once I'd paid for the plane ticket and other travel expenses, I'd still have enough money to buy some clothes or at least have them washed before I ran out.

Once I was all packed and ready to go, I ran down the stairs and grabbed the phone off the hook. First, I dialed the number for the airlines.

"Hello, Southwest Airlines, how may I help you?" a perky voice chimed on the other end of the phone.

"Hi, I'd like the first flight to Anchorage that you can find, out of Seattle." I said urgently.

"One moment please." the woman said as I heard typing in the background. My doorbell chose just that moment to ring. I ran to the front door and flung it open to see Jacob standing on the other side of the door. He took in my insanely hopeful expression, then my packed bags behind me.

"Bella," he almost growled. "What's going on here? Where are you going, and why do you look so excited? I haven't seen you look excited since the bloodsucker..." My expression twisted into a scowl at the derogatory term, but understanding dawned on his face. "You're not going _after _him are you? With Victoria looking for you? Are you insane? How are you ever going to find him? Besides," here his face turned slightly mocking, the hard mask that I had come to hate from Jacob, "I thought he didn't want you anymore." Tears pricked at my eyes, but I ignored his comment.

"Ma'am," the voice on the other end of the phone came back, "We have a 3:00 pm flight out of Seattle today. Would you like to book a ticket?" I hastily looked at my watch. It was about 1:00, which would be cutting it close, but I thought that I could make it.

"Yes please, I'd like to book that under Isabella Swan," and I gave her the rest of my information before hanging up the phone and grabbing my bag to leave. When I turned around, I noticed that Jacob was still here, and he was blocking the door. There was no way that I was getting past him.

"Jake," I began, "Please move out of the way. I need to go somewhere." I grabbed my bag and tried to dodge the massive figure in the doorway, only for him to move so that I was blocked again. "Jake, MOVE!" I practically growled at him. He looked down at me, his face carefully composed, but I could see a hint of irritation and sadness. As much as I hated to see Jacob in pain, I really didn't have time for this right now. I needed to catch my plane, and he was holding me up.

"Bella," he looked down at me seriously. "Where are you going?" he tried not to sound angry or hurt, but I could hear the underlying menace in his voice.

"I..." I started, unsure of how exactly to tell him that I was going to Alaska, to ask people who may or may not know where my ex-boyfriend is, who happens to be a vampire, who left me and hasn't spoken to me since, so that I could go find him, and ask him if he still loved me. And, oh yeah, not to mention the fact that I have a bloodthirsty vampire hanging around who fully intends to torture me to death, and I want to leave the only protection that I have. Yeah. No problem. Jake will understand.

Except that he won't.

In fact, Jake is probably about the last person who would ever understand, since he happens to hate Edward. I tried again.

"Jake, I have to go find him. I need answers. I'm so miserable, and I just need to know why..." I was going to continue, but Jake cut me off.

"Bella, you know why he left you. He said that he didn't love you anymore. Besides, look what he did to you the first time he left. I'm worried that you won't survive it this time." Jacob tried to reason with me, and I understood where he was coming from, I really did, it was just that I had found something that made me question what Jacob was so sure of, even though I too had thought exactly the same thing up until a little while ago.

"Jake, that's not what I wanted to know." I retorted hotly. "I know why he left. I wanted to know why he left some things hidden under my floorboards when he promised me no reminders." I clutched Edward's picture to my chest and grimaced as I said it. It had sounded so trivial when I had said it out loud, but in reality, it was important for my sanity. I needed to know before I completely lost my mind. Jacob would understand _that _right? Because if he didn't... well I knew that I wasn't going to get past five werewolves if they really wanted to stop me. But I needed to get past them, and they needed to understand that. Well, maybe not understand it, but they needed to let me go.

"So you _are _going after him!" Jake roared, obviously angry. I jumped. I had thought that he had known. After all, he sure had been acting like it. I was distracted from my thoughts when he started yelling agin. "Well I absolutely forbid you to leave Forks! You'll just go and get yourself killed." He folded his arms across his chest in an attempt to make himself look more threatening, I assumed. I refused to pay attention to that. Instead, I snorted indignantly.

"Oh really?" I inquired sarcastically. "And how, may I ask, do you intend to stop me?" I was bluffing. I knew, and he knew, that he would most definitely be able to stop me if he really wanted to.

"Bella, you and I both know I could stop you," It was as if he was reading my thoughts. He looked away for a moment, and then sighed. "But I won't. If this is really that important to you, then I'll let you go. Just try not to get hurt okay? I don't want to lose you." I looked at him for a moment before launching myself into his arms enthusiastically. I'm fairly sure that he was shocked. I had basically been a zombie since Edward left and now my enthusiasm rivaled Alice. I was even thinking Edward's name without visibly or mentally cringing.

"Thank you Jake, and please don't tell anyone, even Charlie." I whispered in his ear before breaking our hug grinning. I turned around and raced out of the door and into my truck and made my way to the airport.

When I got there, I raced through security and just barely made it to my plane on time. I was just glad that Jacob had let me go so soon and not decided to argue. As the plane took off, all I could think about was the possibility of being in Edward's arms again soon, that is, if he _did _still love me, and didn't just leave those things for some other reason. I sighed, and drifted off into the first real sleep I'd had since he left. Too soon, or not soon enough, depending on how you looked at it, the flight attendant announced that we were landing in Anchorage.

Excitement rippled through me as I made it one step closer to finding my lost love.

**AN: Okay so next chapter I'm considering writing it from Alice's point of view and then maybe I'll write some chapters in other characters (including Edward's) points of view. Let me know what you think.**


	3. Chapter 3: Troubled Visions

**AN: Okay so this is my first chapter from someone's POV besides Bella and I hope you like it. I think I'm better at doing Bella's POV but I still like doing others. So I will continue to do so until I am told otherwise.**

Disclaimer: I am not Stephenie Meyer and I don't own anything... yadda yadda yadda... Although I wouldn't really mind owning Edward ;).

Chapter 3: Troubled Visions

APOV (Alice)

I sighed unhappily. I know what you're thinking. Alice, unhappy? Well I was. I had been unhappy ever since Edward had made that moronic decision of his to leave to "keep Bella safe." I snorted at that. Not that I didn't sincerely believe that he wanted her to be safe, it's just that with Bella's extreme lack of coordination and tendency to attract danger, I doubted that she'd be any more safe with him gone than she would be with him still there. However, he refused to believe that when I told him. He thought that he was the cause of all of her problems.

Edward was so infuriating sometimes. Not that I would know about his recent mood. I could always look at how he would be in the future, but as for the past, well I couldn't say because he hadn't been home almost at all since he left Bella. I could say, however, that when he was home, he was depressing. He just moped around and wouldn't talk to anyone. I offered to look into her future to see if she was unhappy or not, and for once his depressed mood lifted.

But don't get your hopes up.

Because at that point, his depressed mood only lifted up because he was so angry with me for even mentioning it. He said that Bella would forget him, and that we all needed to just leave it alone. I, on the other hand, highly doubted that she would forget even the smallest detail about Edward. I thought that he knew her better than anyone, but I guess I was wrong, because if he did, he would know that she loved him so much that she would never be able to even begin to let him go.

And it wasn't just Edward. The whole family was depressed since leaving Forks. Well, that might not be accurate. Almost everyone missed _Bella. _We didn't care about the town we lived in, but Bella had made all of our lives so much better. Emmett missed having someone to make fun of. He had treated Bella like a younger sister, even despite the short amount of time that he had known her. For Esme and Carlisle, it was almost like having another daughter. It had been so from almost the first moment they met her. Jasper hadn't known Bella very well, but he had still loved her for the impact she had on Edward and the rest of the family. Everyone's recent depression had been hard on him, because he could feel everything that we were feeling.

For me, Bella had definitely been another sister. She was my best friend and I had loved hanging out with her, despite her dislike of shopping and her lack of good taste in clothes. Plus she had made my brother happy. I couldn't bear to see him the way he was now. Rosalie was the only one who seemed happy about Bella being gone, but to the rest of us, it was like losing a family member.

I looked up to see Jasper enter the room. I forced a weak smile, but I knew that if I had been able to, I would be sobbing. A pained look crossed his face as he sensed my emotion, and I flung myself into his arms, shaking with dry sobs. He sat down on a chair in the corner of our bedroom and pulled me into his lap.

"Alice?" All he did was speak my name, yet I could hear the question in his voice. I took a deep breath, even though I didn't need one.

"I miss her Jazz." I looked up at him, and he nodded, showing understanding. "And not just that," I continued, "I miss the way our family was when she was with us. We never see Edward, and when we do, he's so unhappy."

"Alice, we just have to let them figure this out on their own. Maybe he will realize the mistake he made and go back to her." He said this hesitantly, as if he doubted it, which he probably did, because it didn't even seem very likely to me either.

All of a sudden, Jasper and the room around us disappeared and I was looking at Bella's house back in Forks. Charlie was talking to Billy Black on the sofa. I panicked. I wasn't supposed to be looking into Bella's future. Edward would be angry. But, I argued with myself reasonably, this technically isn't Bella's future, since she isn't here. I caught bits and pieces of their conversation.

"I just don't know what to do." Charlie said. His face looked haggard, as if he hadn't been getting any sleep lately, and Billy looked concerned. "I knew that this boy leaving broke her pretty badly, but I never expected that she'd just up and disappear. I thought she was getting better, after hanging out with Jake for the last few months and..." he trailed off with his sentence, then started again, "I just can't believe she ran away."

I snapped out of my vision to see Jasper looking at me intently. "Alice, what did you see?" He looked a little worried at my panicked expression. I looked at him, my eyes wide.

"Bella ran away." I whispered. "She ran away from home!" I exploded. "What's wrong with her?!?! She's got Charlie worried sick and I'm worried and what if she gets hurt? Oh crap, what are we going to do Jasper?" I was worried now. My mind was completely irrational, as I realized when Jasper made a suggestion that I should have realized to think of right away.

"Why don't you try to see_ her _future." Jasper suggested. So I tried what he said, but all I saw was Bella on a plane. Wait. She was getting off, at Anchorage! That was near here, we could go get her and figure out what she was doing. I gasped out loud and Jasper shook me, trying to figure out what was wrong.

"Jasper, she's flying in to Anchorage, we have to go get her!" I exclaimed. He looked like he was about to say something that he really didn't want to say. It was beginning to worry me. "Jasper?"

"Alice, maybe we shouldn't go after her." Jasper began slowly. I was appalled. Not going after Bella had never even crossed my mind. He noticed my horrified expression and continued. "Alice, Edward specifically told us to stay out of her life. I think he might resent us if we interfere."

I snorted at that one. "Edward is such a big baby. He wouldn't be able to resent us for very long even if he tried, and you know what? Even if he did, I would still go after Bella because I need to see my sister." Jasper opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off, thrusting an accusing finger in his face. "Because that's what she is, whether the rest of this dumb family admits it or not. Bella is family, and I still can't believe that Edward left her. But _I _will not abandon her in her time of need."

He looked slightly bored, and he ran his hand through his hair before speaking. "Fine, Alice. Do what you want, but I am not going with you." I gave him an evil glare, then flounced out of the room.

"Emmett!" I yelled, even though I knew that he would have been able to hear me even if I whispered, I was too mad to keep my voice down. At least I knew that _he _would come with me. He came bounding down the stairs and almost crashed into me.

"Alice! I heard your conversation with Jasper. I want to go with you to find Bella." He smiled conspiratorially, "But we shouldn't tell no fun Edward. Not that he'll call anyway, but we need to find out what's wrong with our little sister. We probably shouldn't tell the rest of the family either. They might say to _respect Edward's wishes._" He laughed after that. "Like I care what he thinks. Let's go. What time does Bella's flight get here?"

"Um..." I looked into Bella's future, and saw her getting off the plane at 3:30. It was 11:00 right now, so if we ran all the way there, we would make it around the same time she did. "Let's go now, and we'll make it there about when she lands." I said to Emmett and then we were off.

As we ran through the Alaskan wilderness, I began to worry about how Edward would react to us seeing Bella. He would probably be angry with us, or even more depressed that we were the ones who got to see her. If he wasn't such an idiot, I would almost feel sorry for him.

When we arrived outside the airport, we immediately knew Bella was nearby, because we could smell her.

There was only one problem.

What we smelled was blood, and lots of it.

**AN: The next chapter is going to possible be Emmett or Bella's POV. Most likely Bella's, but I might throw in a short bit of Emmett's POV, because I want to see how he reacts to the situation that's coming.**


	4. Chapter 4: Deadly Solitude

**AN: This chapter is from Bella's POV and it is about what happens when she gets off the plane. The timing overlaps with the end of chapter 3, so Alice and Emmett won't come in until later.**

Disclaimer: Have you gotten the point yet? I'm not Stephenie Meyer, so I don't own Twilight.

Chapter 4: Deadly Solitude

BPOV

I stepped off the plane, and took a look around the airport. _What do I do now? I have no idea where to go, _I thought to myself. I had no idea where Tanya's family lived, and there was no way I was going to be able to find a group of vampires without some idea as to where to go. I supposed that I would have to rent a car. I sighed. I had enough money, of course, but I had really wanted to save it. This was the only downside to taking a plane, though I'm sure if I had brought my truck, it would've been more expensive with the low gas mileage it gets.

I stepped outside, and looked around. Alaska was already covered in a couple of feet of snow, even though it was only early November. _Great. Now it's going to be even harder to find Denali with having to drive through this snow._

I went to the car rental place and told the woman behind the desk that I would just take the least expensive car that was available for three days. I figured that by then, I would be able to get to Denali, find out if they knew where Edward was, then get back here to return the car, and figure out what to do from there. She handed me the keys once I paid, and I left the main building and went to the parking garage to get my car.

As I walked into the dank garage, the eerie silence began to make me uneasy. There should have been employees here to help me, but nobody was there. In fact, there were no customers there either. All of a sudden, I had an intense urge to get my car, and get the hell out of here. I ran to the parking space that the car I had ordered was in, but before I could go around the side to get in, I saw something laying behind the back wheels.

When I walked around the car to investigate, what I saw made me want to retch. It was a dead body, with the limbs bent at unnatural angles. From the clothes he was wearing, I assumed that he was an employee. I panicked. I couldn't believe that I had been stupid enough to come here without protection. I had promised Jacob that I would be safe, and that I would try not to get hurt, but right now, I knew that I was probably going to die. There was some sort of psychotic serial killer on the loose. They had killed this man, and they were probably going to kill me too. _But it doesn't look like they have a gun,_ my mind pointed out. _They didn't shoot this man, so maybe you can fight them off. _I knew that it was unlikely, given my extreme klutziness, but the thought still gave me a small measure of confidence. That didn't mean, of course, that I was planning on staying to fight, it was merely a last resort. I scrambled to get inside the car before whoever it was could find me. As I opened the door, however, I heard a high pitched voice behind me.

"So we meet again Bella Swan." Was the brilliant cliche that my killer seemed to have come up with for her big opening line. I whirled around to see the owner of the voice. My mouth dropped, and my stomach lurched as cold terror shot through me. I looked into the face that had haunted my dreams, ever since I had found out that she was looking for me. Flaming red hair framed a predatory grin. The crimson eyes bore into mine, her gaze piercing.

"Victoria." I choked out. I was terrified.

"Yes." she sneered. "It's me. Where is your precious boyfriend to protect you this time?" My eyes welled up at this comment.

"It's not like that with us anymore. He left me." I just managed to force the words out. It still hurt and the hole in my chest tightened every time I thought about it.

She scoffed, "Don't think that your lies will get you any sympathy from me." Then she snarled.

"I wasn't..." I started, but I didn't have time to finish because then she pounced. She reached for my arm and twisted it behind my back until I heard a crack in the bone that I couldn't feel through my terror. Before I was aware of anything else, I was flying through the air. My head cracked against the concrete and began bleeding. I managed to open my eyes enough to see Victoria stalk toward me and take a bite out of my neck. I could feel the fire burning through my veins and as I slowly lost consciousness, I heard two voices that I had really missed, but I was sure that I was imagining it. I heard a high pitched shriek and a deep enraged growl. Then Emmett and Alice both shouted my name.

The last thing I remembered was Victoria being ripped away from me as everything went black.

EPOV (Emmett)

Once Alice and I arrived at the airport, we smelled Bella's blood coming from the car rental garage. At first, I just figured that Bella had fallen down again, because that tended to happen a lot with her. Alice and I followed her scent to the garage. It was strong, but mixed in with it, I could smell another scent, I growled loudly as I realized that it was one of us. A vampire, I mean. I thought I recognized the scent, but I wasn't entirely sure. But before I could register what was going on, Alice gasped.

"Victoria!" she croaked, and dashed at vampire speed towards the garage. Once I realized what was happening, I was right on her heels. We arrived at the site of Bella lying on the cement, head bleeding, and arm twisted at an unnatural angle. Victoria was bent over her with her teeth sunk into Bella's neck. I released a roar of fury as Alice shrieked, and we both reflexively yelled Bella's name. I ripped Victoria away, but she ran off before I could get a good shot in. I would've gone after her, but I was too concerned about Bella to care about Victoria. I turned to see Alice hovering over Bella, who was motionless on the ground.

"Alice?" I asked softly, Alice turned to face me, her expression terrified, but lost at the same time. "Is she..." I trailed off, not being able to ask the question that I needed to know the answer to.

Her expression looked strained, "No. She's alive... barely. But Victoria..." She was interrupted by Bella, who began thrashing from side to side and shrieking.

"Fire!" Bella yelled. "Stop the fire! I don't... want... this... not without... Edward..." It was almost impossible for her to get her words out. But the last word was just a whisper.

"Bit her." Alice finished. "And I don't think we can save her this time." She added quietly. "And even if it was possible, I don't think that either of us would have the control." Shame crept into her voice at this, and I knew she really wished she could help Bella.

"Alice, we need to get her out of here until someone comes to investigate." I said reasonably. Trying to stay calmer than was strictly possible, given the situation, all the while, trying to figure out what the hell we were going to say to Edward. He would kill us if he found out that we let this happen. Well it was his own goddamn fault.

Bella was screaming in pain, and I cringed. Maybe Edward would be right to blame us. It felt like our fault. If we had only been there a few minutes earlier, this could've all been avoided. Plus, Bella looks like she's in so much pain. Not just physical pain, we all had to go through that. I'm talking about emotional pain. She just kept saying Edward's name, then whimpering. She was also muttering about how she didn't want this, and how it was all wrong and it should've been Edward.

After a few minutes of Alice and I discussing what to do, Bella started asking us where Edward was. She obviously was in a lot of pain, but he was all that she could think about. Damn she was tough. I could hardly even move my mouth, let alone talk when I went through this.

"Bella, honey," Alice began softly, as if speaking to a hysterical child, "We don't know where Edward is, but we're going to go back to the rest of the family, and when this is all over, we'll help you find him, okay? But for now, we're just going to need you to be kind of quiet okay Bella?" Bella seemed to gather her strength to nod and then made her best attempt to keep her voice down.

"We're going to need to take her back to Denali. We need help to figure out what to do." She said to me. "Edward's not going to be happy you know." She added really quietly. "And I feel bad for her, going through all of this alone."

"She's not alone." I scoffed. "She has us, and the rest of the family."

"Not the member that matters most." Her voice was gentle, and she looked sadly at Bella, "And I think we're all going to regret that."

**AN: So, Bella's turning, I have some ideas as to what she'll be like as a vampire, but I'm not quite sure about her power yet so if you have any suggestions, they would be helpful. Please review!! **

**P.S. I just wanted to thank those of you who have reviewed already. There may not have been many, but they still helped me write. So thanks again.**


	5. Chapter 5: Waking Denial

**AN: Okay can someone tell me how many Denali vampires there are and what their names are? Because I can't remember all of them, but I'd like to put some in my story. I know Tanya and Irina, and isn't there someone named Kate? But that's about it. I would check the books, but I lost my copy of Eclipse (yes I'm a moron, and yes I'm freaking out). So please help me.**

Disclaimer: Okay I'm done. Read the first four chapters if you really want to know.

Chapter 5: Waking Denial

BPOV

I felt pain. My whole body felt as if I was on fire. I tried to open my eyes, but all that did was cause more pain. I realized that movement was not good, and that I should just stay still. As far as I could tell, this pain had been going on for two and a half days, give or take, but my sense of timing may have been slightly off. You know, because of the pain and all. I heard voices talking in the background, but by now I was too far gone to know what they were saying. All I knew were that none of the voices were Edward, and that was all I needed to know. I had known that he didn't want me, but shouldn't he at least be here since this was all his fault. I was mildly aware that I was mumbling some of my thoughts out loud incoherently. How I could talk while I was in too much pain to even open my eyes was beyond me. And the worst part of it was I was fully aware. No drugs to knock me out, like humans in pain got. Nope. I had to go through this fiery torture completely drug free.

As the time went on, the pain slowly began to subside. My skin still felt like it was on fire, but the fire was slowly cooling. I could finally focus enough to listen to what the people in the room were discussing. I didn't want to open my eyes, for fear they would notice me and leave.

"Carlisle, what are we going to do?" Carlisle! I thought, elated. Carlisle was here! And who was the one speaking? "You know Edward's going to be furious when he finds out. But he still needs to know." It was Esme! They must all be here, the only ones I hadn't heard yet were Jasper and Rosalie, but if Alice and Emmett were here, they definitely would be too. I strained to hear as Esme continued. "Where is he? We need to tell him what's going on." Wait. Edward wasn't here? That didn't make sense. The rest of the family was here. Then I thought back to when Alice and Emmett had first found me in the car rental garage. They had said that Edward wasn't with the rest of the family. I wondered why that was.

"Esme, speak more quietly." Carlisle replied in a soft tone. "We don't want to alarm Bella. I'm sure she will want to know where Edward is when she is finished with the transformation. Why else would she have come to Alaska and ran away from home? We can only hope that we will be able to get Edward back here before she wakes up." I knew I hadn't really been asleep, but he must have been referring to waking up from my basically catatonic state and finally becoming coherent again.

"How?!" Esme shrieked, her voice almost desperate. "We haven't heard from him in over a month, and if he continues the streak he's been on, we may not hear from him again in a while. There's no way to prove he'll call in the next..." She paused, probably checking the time, "Four hours or so before she wakes up, and all previous experience shows that he probably won't! I wish we had never left Forks, it's tearing our family apart!" I heard footsteps approaching my bedside... Wait! I heard footsteps. The only people in this room were vampires, and I can't hear them. Realization struck as I realized that it was probably just my vampire abilities finally kicking in. The thought made me insanely, irrationally sad. This had been what I'd wanted, back when I was with Edward, but now that I had to go through it alone, it just wasn't the same. Now, I would have to spend _eternity_ without him, instead of just a meager human life span. I felt a hand touch my cheek, and my eyelids fluttered, and opened to look in Esme's face.

"Esme?" I choked out, and my voice cracked. Her face immediately turned sad.

"Oh Bella, I'm so sorry. I wish that we could've saved you. It's just... I... we never thought that something like this would happen. Jasper told us about Alice's vision of you and..." She was talking a hundred miles an hour, but I could strangely understand it all. However, I cut her off.

"Vision? Alice had a vision of me getting attacked? Did you want it to happen then?" I asked, my elation for seeing the family again disappearing with the realization that they didn't want me there. Even worse, they had wanted me dead.

"No Bella, no!" Esme rushed to assure me. "I was going to say that Alice had a vision of you running away, and we didn't know why so we thought it best just to stay out of it since we didn't want to anger Edward. But we had no idea that you were going to be attacked! Alice never saw that. I'm just thankful that she ignored Jasper's warning to stay away, or you would be dead." I cringed inwardly at the word dead, but knew that she spoke the truth. Victoria's main goal had been to kill me, she just hadn't succeeded. Still, part of me almost wished that she had. Life, or shall I say, lack thereof, would be even worse this way, without Edward there to help me along the way. At least back home, before this, I had Jacob, but he would never want to be around me anymore. In fact, he would probably try to kill me and the Cullens. I didn't love Jacob the way he loved me, but he was still one of the most important people in my life, and it hurt to lose him, especially since he was the only one these days who I could fully depend on. I wanted to trust the Cullens, and a part of me wanted to stay with them now that I was turned. Edward wasn't with them, from what I could tell, so I wouldn't have to look at him every day. But another part of me wondered, do they want me? They left already, what if they do it again? And the most important: Could I really handle looking at them every day and reliving all the wonderful, painful memories of what I lost that I could've had forever, if only I had been enough to hold them. I wasn't enough for Edward then, and I wasn't going to be enough for Edward now. Would someone as plain as me ever be beautiful, even as a vampire? And even if I was, I still had the same boring, ordinary personality. I realized that I was being watched, and I snapped out of my reverie to look Esme in the eye.

"Are you alright Bella dear?" She asked, "Has the pain gone away yet?" Her face was dripping with concern. I sat up, and winced as the fire briefly flared in my abdomen once again before settling down to the dull pain it had been before.

"I think I'm fine," I replied. "The pain isn't completely gone, but it's fading, and I can concentrate now." I looked around the room and noticed that Carlisle had left, and we were all alone. "Where did Carlisle go?" I inquired. "He was here just a minute ago and..." I trailed off, not wanting to let her know that I had heard their private conversation. Though of course Esme would probably already be aware of that fact. She knew how the transformation worked. Already, I could tell that all of my sense were exponentially heightened. I could hear and smell things miles away that I couldn't have before, even close up. I concentrated, and I could hear the quick footsteps of vampires approaching fast up the stairs.

"Oh, he just went to get the others." Esme replied casually. "They were excited to see you, you know." Her voice took on a warm and motherly tone. She turned her head just in time to see five vampires race into the room. Rosalie stood off in a corner and glared at me, while Carlisle and Jasper stood slightly off to the side to make room for Alice and Emmett to come racing up to my bed. They both had such guilty and concerned expressions on their faces, that I would have laughed if it wasn't so sweet.

"Oh my god Bella!" Alice exclaimed while Emmett shuffled his feet nervously. They both looked completely devastated. "I am so sorry! This is all my fault! If I had only seen a vision, I might have been able to make it there in time or stop you from coming or something. Please don't resent me! I knew that you wanted this before, but now... Well I'll understand if you hate me forever, but please don't because then who are you going to hang out with." Her face looked so desperate and pleading that I let out a strangled laugh. Or at least, I tried to. It sounded more like a sob to everyone in the room, including me. Alice raced up to me and squeezed me so tight that if I was a human, I wouldn't have been able to breathe. Then she started up her apology rant again, obviously believing she wasn't forgiven.

"Chill out Alice." I interrupted her, "I forgive you. There was nothing you could have done and as for me being this way..." I trailed off, unsure of how to finish that sentence. I took a deep breath and continued. "Well I'll just have to deal with it, won't I. There's not much I can do about it, is there? And Emmett, please stop looking like that, I'm not mad at you either." A relieved grin broke out across his face, and he ran to join the group hug as well.

"Aw Bells, it's not going to be so bad." He tried to comfort me. "You'll have us to take care of you." As he said this, he squeezed me tighter, for emphasis. At that, my throat constricted.

"You guys, I don't know if I can." I looked at all of their shocked and insulted faces, and felt a little bad, but I just didn't think, vampire or not, I was strong enough to be around all of those memories day after day. "It's just that, you guys bring back too many memories, good memories, don't get me wrong, but when they remind you of a time when you were happy, that you can never have again, happy memories aren't so good. I mean, I don't think that I can be around you guys all of the time with all of the memories of Edward it will bring back.." I knew it was irrational, but all of my theories of Edward loving me still had gone out of my head with the attack. I couldn't help but think that he should've been there to save me. No matter what my more rational mind told me, my irrational mind couldn't get around the fact that he should have known, even though he _had _no way of knowing. And even if he had been too late to save me from being turned, I wouldn't have minded. In fact, a part of me would've been ecstatic, as long as he was there to hold my hand throughout the change.

"Bella," Alice began, "Edward still loves you, and maybe if you're here, he would come home. We all miss him, and we miss you." But I wasn't listening . I was already halfway out the door, and on my way to getting as far from them as possible.

**AN: Okay so at first, I was planning on having Bella go and find Edward. But then, I decided I liked the idea of Edward coming to find Bella so much better. Help me out some though. I'm not entirely sure what I want Bella's power to be. I have some ideas, but I'd like some suggestions too. And it has to be good. And powerful. **

**Thank you very much!**


	6. Chapter 6: Tracking Solutions

**AN: I would just like to thank everyone who reviewed, but especially ****thrufirewithoutaburn.**** Haha you make me laugh. Your reviews help me to update sooner. And just to inform you,**** Belle07**** mentioned that the characters in my story were a bit OOC. I would like to thank her because I was going to say something about that before but I forgot. Yes my characters will be a little OOC, but that's just how it works for the storyline. However, I'm going to try to keep them as in character as possible.****It's harder with characters like Alice and Emmett because you never see their POV's in the books. I think I'm doing OK with Bella though. Tell me whose POV's I do better than others, and I'll work on the ones that need work. Thanks a lot. Keep them coming!**

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight

Chapter 6: Tracking Solutions

EPOV (Esme)

Oh dear. Poor Bella. She was so heartbroken over Edward leaving her. I felt bad that we brought back painful memories for her, but if she would've stayed long enough to hear it, we could've explained. Or at least, we could've gotten Edward back here so that he could've explained. I truly believed that all Bella needed was for him to tell her the truth, that he'd loved her all along, and had only left for her safety. Without that reassurance, Bella was already depressed over her change.

All I could think about was how I wished that there was something I could do to help her. Bella was like another daughter to me, and I felt so helpless, not being able to help her through this problem. But I understood what she needed. Unfortunately, it was nothing that I or anyone else here could give her. For now, our first priority was to track down Edward, and send him to find Bella.

The hardest thing was thinking about what we were going to tell him. He was going to be devastated. All he wanted was for Bella to live a normal, happy life, but she ended up as the thing he never intended her to be. And I was so worried that he was going to be angry with us over it as well. I turned to the family to see them staring openmouthed at the place where Bella had disappeared.

"What are we going to do?" I asked them. Everyone, including me, looked at Carlisle. He was so much like the father figure to everyone else and he was the oldest and wisest. Because of that, he was always the one that everybody turned to for the answers. He looked pensive for a moment.

"Well," he began, "I think that the first thing we need to do is find Edward. But Alice, I want you to keep an eye on Bella as well. Since she's new, someone's going to need to make sure that she doesn't get into trouble. First, Alice, do you know where Edward is going to go next?" The family looked at Alice, who stared blankly off into space for a moment before answering him.

"He has been tracking Victoria—not very well, might I add—and now he's in Texas. How he tracked her there, I'll have no idea. He does have plans to call us in about a week, but do we really want to wait that long?" I looked around at the faces of my family, all showing concern for Bella. It still amazed me how it had been just the seven of us for so long, but that my family accepted Bella so willingly. We all realized the same thing. We couldn't wait that long for Bella, because we loved her, and she needed our help.

EPOV (Edward, 2 days later)

Frustrated, I smashed my fist into a tree for about the tenth time today. I had lost Victoria's scent again. What was she doing this far south? Maybe she wasn't going to do anything to Bella, but I wasn't going to take that chance.

Bella. The thought of that name in my mind made my chest constrict, as if my heart was breaking, but my heart stopped beating a hundred years ago. Could it really break? I suppose, from a scientific viewpoint, the answer would be no. But after what I'd been through, I no longer believed in the word 'impossible'. Not after I met Bella. I would've thought it was impossible for me to resist her blood the way that I did, but it wasn't. I would've thought it was impossible for my family to so willingly accept an outsider, and a human one at that, but it wasn't. And most of all, I would never have believed it possible for someone so wonderful as Bella to fall for a monster like me.

But leaving her was for the best. Even if it felt like I was dying again on the inside. I would gladly go through a million more vampire transformations, just for one more night of holding her in my arms while she sleeps. I slammed my fist into another tree. I couldn't go back to Bella, because I wanted her to live a safe and normal life, and a life like that didn't have room for the terrible creature that I was.

_Edward. _A voice in my head spoke. I looked around, shocked. I had gone out into the middle of the forest so that I wouldn't have any interruptions in my head while I needed to think, but here there was, someone was speaking to me in my head. After a moment, I recognized the voice.

"Carlisle?" I asked out loud, hoping he was close enough to hear me respond. Sure enough, I caught his scent and waited for a moment until he stepped through the bushes on the other end of the clearing.

"Edward, you need to come with me. The family has something that we need to discuss with you." I was confused. Why would he follow me all the way down here just so that the family could tell me something. Why wouldn't he just wait for me to call and tell me then.

"What is it?" I said tonelessly. My voice had lost its life since I left Bella as well. Carlisle's face looked pained, and as I tried to lift the truth from his head, I found out he was concentrating very hard on an intense surgery he had to do later this week. He was trying to keep me out. That never meant anything good. "Fine, well if you're not going to tell me, at least tell me if they're all here, or if they're back in Denali."

"They're all here. In fact, they're staying in a hotel in town. Come on, let's go back." At that, Carlisle turned and headed back into the city. I followed closely at his heels. When we made it back to the hotel room, the whole family was there, each of them blocking my mind reading in some way similar to Carlisle. It was really getting frustrating. A growl rose deep in my throat.

"Tell me what's going on." I commanded flatly. I was getting sick of this. I was busy, I needed to protect Bella, even if I couldn't be with her. Alice stood up and began fidgeting. That was weird. Alice was never uncomfortable. She always fit in with any situation that she was thrown into. The look on her face worried me.

"Edward, it was all my fault. I'm really sorry. I should've known, but I didn't see until it was too late." I was baffled now. I didn't think that she was making any sense. What didn't she see? She was still blocking me in her mind. I wondered why.

"Edward dear, we're going to need you to stay calm. We have kind of an emergency here, and we need your help." Came Esme's quiet voice behind me. I hadn't noticed her move. "But no temper tantrums, please."

"Why do you need me?" I sighed, exasperated. I didn't want to be around people (or vampires) right now. I was useless. I didn't really see how I was going to be any help. I just needed to be alone. "Can't you just get someone else to do it?"

Now it was Emmett's turn to butt in, "Well see, this is kind of a special emergency. It's just that, you know, we need you to talk to someone for us." Even Emmett seemed uncomfortable. What the hell was going on here? It seemed like they were all tiptoeing around me. Emmett has never been concerned with making me angry before, in fact, he seemed to enjoy it.

"What's so special about it? Who do I need to talk to?" I was getting annoyed now. They had better tell me soon or...

"We need you to talk to Bella," Alice blurted out, then clapped her hand over her mouth, even though she was fully aware of what she was saying, it looked more like a worried gesture than a shocked one. Then I knew why.

In six different heads, I saw my beautiful Bella, stone cold, with glowing red eyes.

She was damned. And it was all my fault.

**AN: So... bet you liked that ending! Lol! So I'm all for Edward throwing a complete temper tantrum in chapter 7 but I want to know if you think it's too OOC. Keep in mind, that in New Moon, when the family chooses to "keep" Bella (turn her) Edward goes into the other room and breaks something, so we know he has a temper. Again, some suggestions for Bella's power would be nice. I have one suggestion, but I'm thinking about giving her multiple powers and that will be one of the lesser ones.**


	7. Chapter 7: Potent Abilities

**AN: I know I said that I was going to have Edward throw a temper tantrum in this chapter, but I decided I wanted to show what Bella did after she ran away. The temper tantrum is going to be in the next chapter though... don't worry. Lol.**

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.

Chapter 7: Potent Abilities

BPOV

I knew that I was being irrational, and that I was running away from my problems, but what else could I do? Once I had dreamed of being a vampire, and joining the Cullen family, but now, it just seemed like a consolation prize. Not that it was even much of a consolation; life without Edward was just as much torture now as it had been before, if not more because now I had the ability to think about him all of the time, without even sleep as an escape.

Not to mention all of the new vampire things that I was experiencing. I hadn't gotten a chance to see my reflection yet, but I could tell that my skin had lost its warmth. I knew that when I would finally see my reflection, I would probably be beautiful. But that didn't really matter to me. I avoided looking in the mirror, because I didn't want to see the crimson eyes that I knew would be looking back at me.

When I had run away from the Cullens and Denali, I had gone north to avoid running into any humans. I didn't want any deaths on my hands. I ran up to the wilderness of Alaska, and found a cave about an hour away from where I had left the Cullens. I didn't bother to hide. I knew that even if I tried, they would be able to find me one way or another, since they had Alice. She would be able to see where I was going to be at any given time. I could only hope that they decided to respect my wishes and left me alone.

I was already beginning to resent what I had become. Even the absence of my klutziness was not enough to comfort me. In fact, all that served to do was make me feel worse, as memories of my attraction to danger came back. The only thing I could seem to remember was that Edward would always save me. Now he didn't need to, and he didn't want to. I laughed bitterly. I had finally become what I had been begging for, but I didn't want it anymore. It's just my luck. I was starting to feel a burning in the back of my throat. It not only felt dry, but it felt like a fire was starting to build up in it. Resentfully, I identified this feeling as a remnant of human thirst. I needed blood. The idea repulsed me. It hadn't bothered me when Edward needed blood, but now that I was the one craving it, it just seemed horrible. I hadn't forgotten how disgusting blood had smelled in my human life, or the effect that it had on me.

I ran out of the cave and listened closely. About a half a mile away, I could smell a herd of deer. That would be perfect. I ran towards the smell, and attacked, draining five deer in a matter of seconds. I felt better. The bloodlust was gone, and the animal blood had tasted so good. I was revolted. I couldn't believe I had actually _enjoyed _the taste of blood. I supposed that I had always known, of course, but I think a part of me had subconsciously believed that it wouldn't affect me. Just then, I froze. I heard a group of human campers coming in about a mile off. I tensed, waiting for the smell to hit my nose, for they upwind from me. But I smelled nothing. I was confused. Vampires were supposed to have a keen sense of smell, and the smell of human blood was supposed to be more potent than any other scent, but here was a huge group of humans, and I couldn't smell anything.

I must've lost track of time or something, because before I knew it, the humans were coming into the clearing where I was. Thankfully, the deer I had eaten were back in the woods, and, looking in the pond, I saw that my eyes had lost some of the crimson and turned sort of a reddish brown. Hopefully they were brown enough that they wouldn't scare the humans. But as the humans came closer, I realized something. I still couldn't smell them. And they were only twenty feet away.

"Hey!"One of them shouted, a boy about my age. "What are you doing out here?" I scrambled for an answer. What was I doing out here? Well, I knew that answer, but it wasn't one that I could very well tell these people. So I just made something up.

"I like to walk around out here sometimes. I don't live that far away. What are you doing here?" I hoped turning the question on them would get them to accept my answer more easily. I was right.

"Oh, well we're just camping. Are you sure you're not lost? There's _nothing _I can help you with," With that comment, I saw his eyes sweep across my body. I caught on to the double meaning in his words. Strangely, though I had heard things like it, this comment made me angry. While I was glaring at him, all of a sudden he got picked up off his feet by some invisible force and flung across the clearing. I gasped. I had been imagining him going away, but I hadn't done that. Had I?

I turned around and ran back into the forest while his friends went to go help him up. Trying to figure out what just happened, and to see if I could do it again, I looked at a rock and imagined it being lifted off the ground and into my hands. I closed my eyes for a moment, and when I opened them, the rock was hovering in the air above my hands. I gasped, losing concentration for a moment, and the rock dropped into my open palm. _Well what do you know. _I thought to myself, _I can lift things with my mind. I'm telekinetic. _I guess that was a useful power, but it wasn't exactly my first choice. Just then another thought entered my mind. Maybe the fact that I couldn't smell human blood was a power too. But vampires only have one power. Don't they? I sighed, if I had two, maybe I had more. I'd have to pay close attention so that I could find more if I had them.

Another thought occurred to me. If I was immune to human blood, then I wouldn't have to stay here out in the middle of nowhere. I made a decision. I was going to go back to Forks. I couldn't see Charlie, or my human friends, granted, because they would be able to see the difference in my looks, and I wouldn't have any way to explain it to them. But I could go see Jacob. Sure, he'd be angry about what happened, but he couldn't blame me, because it wasn't my choice. I needed someone to talk to, to understand, and since I couldn't talk to the Cullens, I would go to Jacob.

Still, another thought nagged at my brain. Vampires and werewolves were enemies. What if Jacob didn't want to be my friend any more, despite the fact that this wasn't my fault? What if he couldn't see me as Bella anymore? That would break my heart, because then I would have nobody. I had already lost Edward, could I bear to lose Jacob as well? But I knew that I had to try. I needed to talk to someone. So I made my decision.

I was going to Forks.

**AN: Okay first, credit goes to ****la cantante**** for their idea of giving Bella telekinetic powers. She will have many powers, which she will discover as the story goes on. I like your suggestions, and I will use them and be sure to give you credit. **

**On to more ideas. I was thinking that maybe Bella could meet another vampire and get together with him for a while. I'm definitely going to make Bella and Edward end up together, but I just thought maybe it'd be interesting to throw some drama in there to make the story last longer. I'm not going to write it either way until someone gives me their opinion, because I can't decide. I'll keep going through chapter 8 or maybe chapter 9 but I will have to know what I'm going to do by chapter 10 for sure. So let me know your opinions. Thanks and review! I love to read them.**


	8. Chapter 8: Enraged Destruction

**AN: Okay so here's chapter 8. Finally. Lol just kidding. I mean come on, it's only been a few hours. I always try to update asap and so far it has never taken me more than a day to update, and sometimes I update twice a day. This is just as much for me as it is for you, because if I don't update often, I'll forget and eventually just stop. Lol so okay, here's the new chapter. Enjoy!**

Disclaimer: I am not Stephenie Meyer. Probably why my characters personalities aren't right on fyi.

Chapter 8: Enraged Destruction

EPOV (Edward)

"Bella. Is. A. VAMPIRE?" Each word I spoke got a little bit louder, and I punctuated it by slamming my fist into the wall. I looked at all of their somber, pitying faces, and it made me even angrier. I threw a lamp into a wall. "Answer me dammit!" I didn't usually use this kind of language, but I was angry. This is the worst thing that could've possibly happened.

"Edward, we..." Alice began, but I cut her off. I whirled on her.

"You!" I said, pointing an accusing finger at her. "You said that this was all your fault. Why didn't you see it! How is that even _possible!" _The last word came out as a low hiss. She scrambled for an explanation, but another thought entered my mind, and my original question no longer mattered.

"Who?" I asked flatly, but with a hint of menace in my voice. If it was any of them, I would tear them to shreds. They didn't need to explain, they knew what I was talking about. I saw them all looking at each other uneasily, as if they didn't know how to answer. Then everyone slowly turned to Carlisle.

"It was YOU!" I shouted. I couldn't believe that my own father had damned the reason for my existence to this eternal hell. I couldn't believe that he went against my specific wishes. I couldn't believe...

"It wasn't me Edward." Carlisle said calmly, cutting off my thoughts. Oh. Well still, how the hell could he be so calm about this? A distant part of me realized that I was using any excuse I could find to be angry, but the other part of me, the angry one closer to the surface was wondering why the hell I shouldn't be mad at them. It's not as if they had stopped this. The other part of me took that moment to mention that I hadn't stopped it either. The guilt nagged at me a bit, but was still largely outnumbered by the anger.

"So who was it." I said through gritted teeth. "Somebody had better tell me who the hell did this to my Bella so that I can rip them apart."

"It was Victoria." Emmett finally joined the conversation. The guilt came back full force after that. It was all my fault. I had been tracking Victoria all the way down here, while she was really... where? In Forks? I remembered that they hadn't told me the whole story.

"Tell me the whole story." I tried very hard to keep my voice even. 

"I'll tell it." Alice piped in. "I was with Jasper and all of a sudden, I had a vision. Not one of Bella, of course, because you told me to stay out of her future, but it was Charlie and Billy Black sitting together in Bella's living room and Charlie was telling Billy that Bella had run away. I kind of freaked out so I looked into Bella's future and saw her getting off a plane in Anchorage. I didn't see much of her future, because I freaked out and wanted to go find her. If I hadn't of done that, I might have seen Victoria. But Emmett and I decided to go find Bella and ask her what she was doing in Alaska. By the way we never did get a chance to ask her, but we think that she was looking for you." Great, so that was my fault too. "When we got to the airport, we smelled her blood so we followed the scent and we found her in an abandoned parking garage with a dead employee on the ground and Victoria standing over her. But we were too late to save her. She had already been bitten. I'm so sorry Edward."

"This is all my fault." I said, my voice sounding tortured. "All my fault." I repeated, a bit of anger creeping into my voice. "But at least you guys could've managed to save her in damn time!" Now I was releasing my anger on the family. God, I needed a therapist.

I picked up the remote and threw it with all my strength into the television, which exploded into a million pieces. I turned around, murder in my eyes, and flung the couch into the wall. I proceeded to race around the hotel room destroying everything that I could get my hands on. When almost everything in the room was torn to shreds, I heard a soft but commanding voice.

"Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, stop this right this instant." I turned openmouthed to face Esme, and went to argue, but she cut me off. "You are acting like a spoiled child. You are a hundred year old vampire who is acting like a five year old. I will not stand for this one more minute." Esme was looking really angry now. It was beginning to worry me now. Esme was never angry. Sure she was our motherly figure, but she never got mad at us or told us what to do. "Bella needs you right now, since she ran away from us, and you need to go find her instead of focusing on what could've been done to prevent her change. It's over."

"Wait, Bella's not here? She ran away?" I was beginning to panic now. I had thought my family had brought my love with me, but instead they tell me that they don't know where she is, and I have to go find her? My poor Bella. I could only imagine how frightened she would be, but she didn't even stay to let my family help her? 

"Yes dear." Esme replied. "Bella told us that she couldn't stay with us because it was hard enough missing you without having to see you or your family every day to remind her what she lost." Wait, what? Bella left because she thought I didn't love her? But I did love her. I would've come back to be with her the second I found out. 

"Why didn't you tell her the truth? You all know that I still love Bella, and maybe if you had told her, she would've stayed until I could get there to explain myself." I was frustrated now. Maybe Bella becoming a vampire wasn't their fault, but it was their fault that she left. That she was out there on her own right now, probably scared and confused. All I wanted was to get to her so that we could finally be together after all of these months apart. Especially since I no longer needed to worry about putting her in danger.

"Edward, we didn't think it was ours to tell." Carlisle replied. "Plus, Bella didn't exactly stay around long to chat. We thought it would be better if she heard it from you." I sighed. He was probably right. But now I had to go through the process of tracking her down before I could get the chance to tell her. Not that it wasn't worth it, I just wished I didn't have to. I wished she was here now.

"You're right. But now I have to go find her. Alice, do you know where she's going?" I hoped Bella was being sensible and staying away from humans, but I had an uneasy feeling that might not be the case. Alice got a blank look on her face while she tried to figure out where Bella was going.

"I don't see why you're going after her at all." Came Rosalie's snobby voice from the corner. "We're all perfectly fine the way we are. We don't need her. Just leave the little bitch on her own." I turned and growled at Rosalie. Her irrational dislike of Bella was a constant thorn in my side, but this time it was just too much. How could anyone be that heartless that they would want to just leave her on her own? She needed a friend at the very least right now.

"Rose!" Emmett gasped. "How could you say something like that? She's a part of the family just as any of us are." I smiled. As much as Rose's comment had bugged me, it sounded wonderful to hear Bella defended. She really was a member of the family.

"Ugh, she is not. She's just a human who's been getting in the way." This time I chose to ignore Rosalie's comment and I turned back to Alice. Just then, the blank look left her face, but the look she had worried me a bit.

"Alice? Do you know where she's going?" I asked, trying to decipher the look on her face. I listened as she showed me the vision in her head. I understood the worried look after I had seen it all. I knew where Bella was going. I had hoped that she wouldn't go near humans, but my wishes hadn't been granted.

Bella was going to Forks.

And I supposed that meant that I was too.

**AN: So I know the temper tantrum wasn't all that exciting, but I didn't know what else to do. I thought of temper tantrums I've seen, but these were the only things that normal people do that I could imagine Edward doing. (I know normal people don't throw couches or make televisions explode, but he's a vampire so it's going to be more intense.) I think that I pretty much decided not to have Bella meet another vampire or coven, but I might still change my mind, so continue to tell me your opinions. Thanks. I'll try to have a chapter up by 5:00 pm tomorrow. But it might be a little later.**


	9. Author's Note

**AN: Okay, sorry but this isn't a chapter. I am so blocked right now I can't even think of anything. I'm going to work on starting a new story, but for now, please keep reviewing me because I can't even begin to think of what to make next. I know Edward's going to find Bella, but I don't know what's going to happen when he does. So until I hear an idea that I like, I'm not going to write anymore. I suppose I can still try, but unless if you guys give me something to use, it will probably take me a lot longer to find an idea that I like so it will take me longer to come out with a chapter than it would if you all would just give me some suggestions. So tell me what you want to hear, and please review. **

**In the meantime, I'll try to write some other stuff for you guys. Thanks for being such great readers! I love you all! Go to my user profile and I will put a poll up for what you want me to write next. So let me know which ones you want me to write.**

**Bye! Hope to update soon!**


	10. Chapter 9: Painful Rejections

**AN: Okay, I'm finally back!! I want to apologize for being so dumb and stopping the story temporarily, but I swear I had **_**really **_**bad writer's block. I decided I'm not going to update as often now so that we don't have a repeat of the last incident where I write out everything that's in my head but I don't have anything else afterwards. Of course I'm still going to update every day or every other day, but probably not twice a day like I was doing before. Thanks and Review!**

Disclaimer: Again, I'm not Stephenie Meyer, none of these characters are mine.

Chapter 9: Burning Rejections

BPOV

I was running full speed towards home off the side of the highway. As I came close, I passed the sign on the side of the road that said, "Welcome to Forks." I smiled to myself with the idea that I was going to see Jacob soon. Jacob would know what to do, and he would make everything better. Even though I was barely through the town limits, and I was miles away from La Push, I could already smell them. For a moment, I puzzled over that fact. I could smell scents on humans, but I couldn't smell their blood. Yet I was almost sure that the scent I smelled was blood. I wasn't sure how I knew that what I smelled was the werewolves, or blood, but it reminded me slightly of the wolves that I had smelled when I was hunting in Alaska. Maybe that was why I could smell their blood. They were part animal, and so their blood was too.

Oddly enough, the scent of the werewolves didn't repulse me as it seemed to do to other vampires. Huh. Well, I just assumed that this was another one of my so called "powers." I froze in my tracks as I saw six giant wolves step out of the woods. I had been so absorbed with trying to figure out why I could smell them, that I hadn't noticed that they had gotten much, much closer.

"Jake!" I shouted, ecstatic, as I raced forward to hug him. I knew that he was still a wolf, but I didn't care. I was just so happy to see him. Before I could get to him, however, a menacing growl escaped his lips. Once again, I froze as he morphed back into a human. A very _naked _human I might add. This was slightly uncomfortable, and I didn't know what to say. Fortunately, he had a pair of pants with him that he slipped on when he noticed my awkward expression.

"Stay away from me Bella." Jacob said flatly and coldly. "You're one of _them _now. You still smell the same, which is weird to say the least, but you're still not Bella. Who did this? Did the Cullens," he spat out the name like it was a curse word, "Break the treaty and do this to you? This is _war. _And now you're a part of it. All because you fell in love with that bloodsucker and he decided to keep you." Jacob's face was twisted in a mask of rage. It broke my heart. I had thought that he would always be there for me. Especially since this wasn't my fault.

"He didn't decide to keep me." I said quietly, not meeting Jake's eyes. "Do you want to know the truth," my voice was increasing in volume now. "Do you _really _want to know how this happened? How about the fact that I haven't even seen Edward before or after this happened? He doesn't even care enough to come see what he's caused! Alice and Emmett saved me when Victoria tried to kill me. They just couldn't stop this, she had already bitten me and the venom had worked its way into my system. Are you happy now!? Do you think I want this?" By the end I was screaming, and if I were still human, I would've been bawling.

Jacob looked a little stricken by my remarks, but his face quickly faded back into his emotionless mask. I now realized that none of the other werewolves had phased back into human form. I let out a choked laugh. They didn't even trust me enough to talk to me as humans. Despite the words that had previously come out of Jacob's mouth, this hurt me more than anything else.

"Jake, I need you." I whispered. "I don't want this any more than you do. I need you to be there for me. You're my best friend." I noticed that all of his packmates had backed off a ways into the woods.

He didn't say anything for a long while. You could cut through the tension in the air with a knife. I searched his eyes for any hint of the friendship that we had shared over the last few months, but there was none. I looked away, not being able to bear it. Deep down I had known that he would have a hard time accepting me, but I thought he would eventually. I never thought he would react like this. I especially never saw his next words coming.

"You're one of them now." He said harshly. "My enemy." With that, he turned around and stormed in the other direction.

"No Jake!" I shouted after him, starting to stumble after him, but despite being a vampire, I lost all strength in my legs and fell to my knees. "Please no!" My screams slowly faded into heavy dry sobs. Finally I realized something I should have known long ago.

Nobody wanted me.

Well that was fine. If nobody wanted me, I'd make sure nobody had to see me ever again.

EPOV

The skies were clouded over in the small town of Forks, Washington. Big surprise. It was always overcast or raining in Forks, not that I minded. Being a vampire, the lack of constant sunshine definitely made it easier for me to be outside unnoticed. It wasn't as if I could live anywhere else and be able to go to school every day the way I had before. I would've been exposed. Something was wrong though. I couldn't smell Bella anywhere. I had been worried that I wouldn't be able to find her anymore, now that she was a vampire and I didn't know what she smelled like, but oddly enough, Alice said that her scent hadn't changed one bit. Her features also were less severe than the normal average vampire. Of course, Alice assured me that she had gained the beauty of a vampire, but her skin was not quite as pale, her eyes not quite as red, and her strength and speed not quite as intense. That was something I puzzled over. I had always known that Bella was special, but I had expected the differences as a vampire to be stronger mental powers, not weakened physical abilities.

One thing I knew, however, was that Bella was not here. I could still smell the lingering scent of her off the side of the highway, but she was nowhere to be found. As I kept running, another scent caught my attention. An involuntary growl made its way out of my throat. I could smell _werewolves_, their scents mixed in with that of my beautiful Bella. I could also hear and smell them approaching fast. I braced myself for the confrontation. This was definitely not something I wanted to deal with. At the moment, my first priority was finding Bella. I didn't have much time to do that, considering that it had just begun to rain. The rain would work to wash away Bella's scent. Though I know the water wouldn't be able to hide it completely, it would certainly make finding her a much longer process than it needed to be, and I wanted to find her _soon._

As the werewolves stepped through the trees, as giant dogs, I recognized the mental voice of the second in command. Jacob Black. If I could recall correctly, and I'm sure I could, he had been the one to reveal our secret to Bella, the secret that had gotten her life taken away.

"Where is she mongrel?" I asked him menacingly. His thoughts back made me cringe.

_Hell if I know. She disappeared after our little confrontation here in the woods. Good riddance if you ask me. Now you just have to leave and it will be perfect. _ I saw in his head what their "little confrontation" had entailed, and I immediately got even more angry than I had been before.

"What is _wrong _with you." I barked severely. "She was your friend and you completely blew her off because of something she couldn't control. She needed somebody and you just blew her off!" It was taking every ounce of self-control I had not to attack, but I knew that if I did, I would be outnumbered so I stayed put.

_Well coming from you that's rich. Weren't you the one who left her months ago? You should have seen her when you were gone. _And then I did. He focused his thoughts on memories of Bella when I had left. She hardly looked human. Her face was gaunt and tired looking. She had lost her beauty that was just so alive. No doubt about it, I would always find her beautiful, but it was different this time. It was wrong. Her beauty had lost all of its life. I couldn't bear to see her like that.

"Well I'm back now. I love her and I _will _stand by her." And at that moment I made a promise to myself. No matter what happened I would track her down and I would never leave her again. We would be together for eternity.

**AN: YAY!! Maybe not my best chapter but hey at least it's an update. I have the rest of the storyline planned out now, so don't worry about another case of writer's block, because chances are it won't happen. Even though I now the basic ideas of what's going to happen in the rest of my story, I'm still open to suggestions, so give me some if you have any ideas. Also, please review. Lack of reviews is a part of what contributed to my writer's block before. It's hard to write something when you think nobody's reading it. Thanks and Enjoy!**


	11. Chapter 10: Dangerous Encounters

**AN: You know what? I hate homework. I despise homework. I actually usually don't do homework at all. But now my parents are pissed, so I have to start doing homework. Which means less updating. Not **_**that **_**much less... but less all the same. Plus, weirdly, lately its been taking me like a really long time to just write one chapter. I still get them done, and I still have inspiration, its just not as intense anymore. So sorry I don't update as much. I love you all for reading them anyway.**

Disclaimer: If I were Stephenie Meyer, I would've never let them make the best book in the world into a dumb movie. That said, I'm not Stephenie Meyer and I don't own anything.

Chapter 10: Dangerous Encounters

EPOV

I was incredibly frustrated. I could barely detect Bella's scent through the rain, and the process of finding her was much more difficult than I had hoped. Not that it would stop me, of course. I would go to the ends of the earth for Bella, and the way this was going, that was probably what was going to happen. Her scent had woven its way through half of the Olympic Peninsula by now! I knew that if I could catch a good trail, I would catch up with her in no time, thanks to her weakened vampire abilities. I was still puzzling over why it was that her humanity clung to her so obstinately. It was odd. I wondered what other threads of humanity still stayed. But there would be time to figure that out later, at least, I hoped there would be. Now, however, my priority was to find her, and to do that, I needed to talk to Alice.

I fished a small silver phone out of my pocket, and quickly dialed Alice's number. The phone barely rang once before she picked up, thanks largely to her visions.

"Edward, I don't really know where she's going." It took me a moment to pick up on the fact that since she knew I was calling, she would also probably know what it was that I wanted as well. Then she continued, "She keeps changing her mind too quickly for any of my visions to be completely clear. I do know that in a few minutes, she'll be just south of Seattle, and..." Alice trailed off. I waited for a moment, but when she didn't answer I decided that I had to speak up.

"Alice?" I asked. I heard a momentary rustling on the other end of the phone, and then Jasper's voice came out of the earpiece.

"Sorry Edward, just a minute, she's having a vision." I sighed impatiently. I didn't have time for this, I needed to find Bella _now._ After a second, I began pacing back and forth across the middle of a clearing I had stumbled across searching for Bella.

"Edward?" Immediately, I snapped to attention. That was Alice's voice! Now she could tell me what she saw.

"What Alice?! What did you see?!" Alice sounded really worried and it was beginning to scare me. "Is Bella alright?" I asked frantically.

"I don't know Edward." She said quietly. "But I saw her with another vampire, and he didn't look too friendly. Before you ask, no he wasn't a 'vegetarian'." I blanched. My face would've paled considerably if I hadn't been a vampire, immune to such human traits.

"Where is she?" I forced out from between my teeth. Alice didn't answer for a moment, and I snapped. "Tell me dammit! Where is she?!" I immediately felt bad for yelling at Alice, but I would have time for apologies later.

"She's just south of Seattle, and she's going to be staying there for a while. Don't beat yourself up about this Edward. You'll be able to help her, I know you will." Her voice sounded not so much like she was sure, but more like she was trying to convince herself.

"Thanks Alice." I mumbled before hanging up the phone and heading full speed towards Seattle. I just hoped she was right.

APOV

Edward had called and I had been about to tell him that I had seen Bella getting to Seattle, then leaving to head for Florida to see her mother. It worried me, because to be around that many humans would surely be a struggle for a newborn vampire. But then, I had an even more disturbing vision. I zoned out for a moment, and I saw Bella smiling and talking to a man, no wait, a vampire. This vampire, however, was not like us. His eyes glowed a bright crimson, and he was staring at Bella threateningly, though from the look on her face, she had no idea. After I had snapped out of this vision and told Edward what was happening, I went off in search of the rest of the family. Jasper was with me, as he had been during the phone call, but the rest of the family was missing. Hunting, I supposed.

I picked up my cell phone and dialed Carlisle's number quickly. He picked up, and I immediately launched into a description of my vision, explaining to him why we needed to get to Seattle _right away._ After hearing my story, he fully agreed. He said that he didn't get a very good feeling about this vampire I was describing. Something just didn't feel right involving his interest in Bella. Not that there was anything wrong with Bella, she was beautiful. But what I saw in his eyes hadn't been desire, it had been something much more sinister, more feral. It frightened me, which I had to admit, was not an easy thing to do.

"Jasper," I called, and he appeared at my side. "We need to go to Seattle." He looked at me for a while, analyzing my expression, before he nodded and pulled me into his arms.

"It's going to be okay." He whispered soothingly. "We're going to find her and convince her to come back." It was the first major contact we'd had with each other since the vision incident. I had been angry at his refusal to come with me to help Bella. Emmett had also been on the outs with Rosalie since her comments against Bella to Edward. But I needed Jasper right now. I was falling apart, and I knew he could feel it. "She's going to be okay." He repeated. And I wanted to believe him, I really did, but I had a uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach that told me otherwise, and it was getting harder and harder to ignore.

BPOV

I had an odd feeling that I was still in shock. A strong feeling in my heart was trying to convince me that Jacob still cared, and that he would come around. Yet still, the only image that would come to mind was remembrance of the bitter denial of our friendship. I thought it had hurt when Edward left me, but the feeling of adding another loss on top of that was insanely more painful.

When I had left the wolves, I had no idea where I wanted to go. It wasn't as if I had anything to do, or anyone to do it with. I gasped as the hole in my chest ripped wide open again. I had thought I would've lost the hole along with my humanity, but apparently not. It was the same with many other human traits, I had discovered. When Jacob had betrayed me and left, something had happened that I had been under the impression would never happen again. I had cried. Correction, I had sobbed, which was to be expected, but what wasn't to be expected had been the actual tears coming out of my eyes.

After running this whole way, the pain finally took over and I collapsed to the ground, just letting the misery take hold of me. It had begun raining, and the water streaming down my face masked the tears falling from my eyes. I assumed that I was somewhere near Seattle now, since that had been where I was headed, I was pretty sure.

Looking around, I noticed that I was in a small clearing, that reminded me of the meadow that I had shared with Edward. I remembered that first day we had spent there together.

_The meadow, so spectacular to me at first, paled next to his magnificence._

_Hesitantly, always afraid, even now, that he would disappear like a mirage, too beautiful to be real... hesitantly, I reached out one finger and stroked the back of his shimmering hand, where it lay within my reach. I marveled again at the perfect texture, satin smooth, cool as stone. When I looked up again, his eyes were open, watching me. Butterscotch today, lighter, warmer after hunting. His quick smile turned up the corners of his flawless lips. (Twilight p261)_

That was one of my best memories, and one of the most painful. As my mind replayed the scene when he left me, I suddenly got very angry. I turned my face to the sky and shouted. "Why did you do this to me?! This is all your fault!" I wasn't really talking to anyone that would be able to hear, but to Edward. It was his fault. His fault that I was a vampire, his fault that Jacob hated me, his fault I would never see Charlie again, his fault...

"Well what did I do?" A voice behind me startled me into turning around. _Damn. _I thought. _This is the second time I hadn't sensed someone sneaking up on me. _I began to worry about my vampire powers. I knew I was a vampire, but how was I going to survive if I couldn't protect myself. The man behind me was gorgeous, though not as insanely beautiful as Edward. He had long black hair tied back into a ponytail, and he was muscular without being too bulky. Still, one thing disturbed me, his piercing crimson eyes. "Considering we just met and all." He cocked his head to the side and looked at me curiously.

I felt a blush rush to my cheeks. Wait, a blush? He looked just as surprised as I was. "I'm sorry, I wasn't talking to you, I didn't even know that you were there." I apologized. I shifted uncomfortably as he took a step forward to place his hand on my cheek.

"You're blushing." He said. It was a statement, not a question, but I could tell he was confused. I still felt a little uneasy around him, but I was glad to have someone that I could talk to. "How is that possible," he murmured, I'm sure mostly to himself.

"I... I guess I retained many parts of my humanity when I was changed. I've already noticed a couple of others." I answered reluctantly. I didn't really want to tell him about the crying, and I was hoping he didn't ask.

"Such as?" I sighed. He asked, I should've known he would've.

"Well, I can cry as well." I replied. The sharp lines of his face softened a bit, and I smiled sadly in return.

"Why were you crying?" The voice was gentle, but I still couldn't help but wish for a different voice. Many different voices actually, he made me kind of nervous.

"I, well, nobody wants me. I'm alone. My friends betrayed me when they found out, and I couldn't bear to stay with my ex-boyfriend's family knowing that they were just keeping me around out of pity. They were vampires, just so you know." I added, sure he'd be confused as to why I would be even considering staying with humans.

"Well..." he replied slowly. "You could stay with me."

A glimmer of hope overcame my fear, and my uneasiness around him evaporated slightly. "Thank you." I whispered. I still missed Edward and Jake, but now I didn't feel quite so alone.

**AN: Okay so I decided to bring another vampire into the picture. But as you can maybe tell from some of my skilled foreshadowing, he's going to end up being more of a threat than help. Go Edward right? I know Jacob's reaction might have seemed a little off, but he was in shock. They might make up later, maybe once he comes to terms with things, but I'm not sure yet. Thanks for reading! Review!**


	12. Chapter 11: Harsh Betrayal

**AN: Hey guys!! I'm so sorry that it took me so long to update. I was busy, and then I'd get distracted every time I'd try to write. I really hope you like this chapter. I don't think I've been writing as well lately so it probably wasn't worth the wait, but I hope it was. It might answer some questions about the new vampire that you may have been wondering about.**

Disclaimer: What I wouldn't give to own Edward. Just for five minutes. Imagine... But oh well! I don't own him or any other characters. That would be Stephenie Meyer's job. pouts immaturely

Chapter 11: Harsh Betrayal

BPOV

His name was Noah. The other vampire I met, I mean. At least, that was what he told me. I still couldn't figure out why it was that I didn't trust him. Well, perhaps it was merely that, at this point in my life, I didn't trust anyone. After all, everyone had left me. I guess I was probably just afraid that he would too. A few minutes after I met him in the woods, he asked me who I was going to stay with, since everyone else had left me.

"Nobody, I guess. I'll just go out on my own." I replied reluctantly. He looked at me in complete disbelief. Immediately, my reaction was to switch into defensive mode at his expression. "What?" I snapped.

"Nothing, it's just, you seem so fragile, in comparison to other vampires. So..." he scrambled around for a moment, trying to find the right word. "Human." He tried carefully, obviously afraid of offending me. "It makes you so vulnerable, and I know many vampires who would try to take advantage of that if you're alone."

"Oh really? And how do I know that you're any different?" He looked a bit insulted, but it was true. How _could _I know that he was sincere. We had just met after all.

"I am. I'm not like other vampires." His tone was defensive now. I briefly wondered if he was hiding something, but I pushed the thought to the back of my mind. Staring at his glowing crimson irises, though, another thought entered my mind.

"It looks to me that you are like other vampires. At least most of them." And it was true. He killed humans. How I couldn't have thought of that before I had no idea. Their color had registered, but what it meant hadn't fully caught up to me until now. "You kill humans. You're just like other vampires."

"I _am _a vampire you know." He said exasperated, as if I was missing something very obvious. "We kill humans. Please don't tell me you're so naive to think that's not what we do. How long have you been a vampire? Shouldn't you know this by now?" With this, he raised one eyebrow half sarcastically.

"Well I _don't _kill humans. And neither do any of the _good _vampires I know." I put extra emphasis on the word good. And it was true. All the good vampires I knew drank animal blood. They didn't kill humans.

"You don't kill humans?" He looked confused. "Then how do you feed?" I could tell from his expression that he wasn't trying to offend me, he merely was puzzled.

"I, and the family who originally taught me about vampires, feed on animal blood. I'm much more comfortable with that lifestyle. Being that I was human when I fell in love with..." I couldn't force myself to say his name, I already felt the hole in my chest beginning to make its presence known once again. "A vampire, I understand that humans and vampires can interact in ways other than the traditional predator prey relationship. I guess you could say that I kept my conscience through my change, along with my other shreds of humanity."

"Very well. I do not fully comprehend why you have made this decision," he said, sounding strangely formal to my ears. "But I respect it. I would much appreciate it, however, if you would come with me to my home and stay with me so that you aren't alone." A part of my couldn't comprehend why, even though he had just met me, he felt such an urge to protect me. It made me a bit suspicious. However, I quickly shoved those thoughts out of my mind, remembering how Edward had the same urge to protect me slightly after he met me as well. Of course, it wasn't as quick, he had wanted to kill me at first, but it was still soon. Maybe I just had this effect on vampires. I knew it was probably thinking way to highly of my charms to believe I could have that big of an effect on anyone, but still, it was the only explanation I had handy.

"Sure, I guess." I was reluctant to accept his offer, but I knew he was right. I had noticed that I wasn't quite as strong or as fast as a normal vampire should be, as if I was caught between my humanity and being a vampire. There _was _a good chance that some other vampires might take advantage of my weakness. At the time, it didn't occur to me that with my telekinetic powers, I could always just throw away any attacker, but who knew, maybe my mental powers had the same barriers as my physical powers, I hadn't really tested them.

"Wonderful. Shall we go?" He inquired offering me his hand. I still didn't feel comfortable taking it, so we took off running. After a matter of seconds, he was so far ahead of me that even with my superior senses, I couldn't see him. He came back to my side and looked at me curiously. "I hadn't realized you were so slow." He stated. I felt like I should be taking offense, but it was the truth, so I didn't. "You should ride on my back." With that he took me by the arm and flung me over his shoulder. It felt awkward. The last time I had been in this position, I was on Edward's back. I hadn't realized how much I missed the feeling until now, but it didn't seem right because it wasn't him.

The race through the wilderness, despite the person whose back I was on, was exhilarating. The trees raced by at seemingly impossible speeds as the rain pelted my face harshly. After a moment, Noah slowed to a stop as he stepped through the final layer of trees and into a large clearing. The clearing held the second most beautiful house I had ever seen, next to the Cullens'.

"Welcome to my home." He said after he set me down, making a sweeping gesture towards the house with his hand. I stood there staring in awe for a moment, then followed behind him into my new home.

EPOV

I smelled Bella. Her scent was getting to be overpowering. It hadn't really changed much since she was human, despite the fact that it no longer made the venom burn in my mouth and no longer gave me the urge to tear her apart. I cringed at the memories. Memories of my nature putting her in danger. It was why I had left, a decision I was regretting more and more with each passing day. I had done it to keep her safe, to separate her from this world that she was now made a part of. Alice had said that in her vision, Bella was with a non-vegetarian vampire, and she was going to stay with him. Jealousy ripped through me at that image. Jealousy and rage. Alice had told me that he had not made a decision yet, but she knew that he meant Bella harm, if anything. That meant I had to get to my love before it was too late.

Her scent was getting closer. I was almost there. I sped up, until all of a sudden, _he _was standing right in front of me. The vampire from Alice's vision. I dropped into a crouch, snarling. He laughed, but it was not a happy sound, it was maniacal, deranged.

"Fool. What are you doing here? If you are who I think you are, Edward isn't it?" He paused for my answer, and I gave a curt nod, still crouching. "Yes well then you are foolish to come here. Bella has no need for you now. She is mine." I snarled louder.

"Bella will never be yours. I will not allow you to harm her." I was taken aback by the force of my own voice. I don't think I had ever been this angry before. Somehow, this was even worse than when James had taken her. She was vulnerable right now, and this man was taking advantage of her.

"Harm her?" He sneered, face twisting into a mask of rage. "You mean like you did? I would never harm her. However I won't be able to say the same for the company she's in now." I panicked. I had no clue what he meant. Then it occurred to me. I hadn't been listening to his thoughts. Concentrating, I picked up on what he had been trying to disguise up until now. Victoria, standing in a threatening crouch, facing my Bella and ready to pounce, her face twisted into a malicious smile. I gasped, feeling like I needed air, like I was suffocating even though I knew it wasn't possible.

"So Bella was right about your powers." Was his mocking statement. "But it is of no matter. As I'm sure you know, Victoria is going to destroy Bella. However not right now. Oddly enough, she wanted you to be there to watch. She wanted to take down your entire family with you as well. So, since orders are orders, I'm supposed to bring you to her. My apologies." He nodded solemnly as I turned around to see an army of about ten newborn vampires. And they were all coming for me.

**AN: Ahh! I know, kind of a cliffy. I would've written more, but it would've taken longer and I feel bad enough as it is for not getting this out sooner. Review and tell me what you think. Next chapter will be about Bella's view of this betrayal. **


	13. Chapter 12: Approaching Conflict

**AN: So sorry for not updating earlier! I was really busy this week. I had a practice for a band concert Monday, a band concert Tuesday, I had to help my sister with a huge project on Wednesday, yesterday nobody would let me on the computer long enough to write, and today was my sister's birthday! People have been pointing things out in my story that seem wrong or don't make sense or are happening too quickly. I just wanted to say to remember that I have a reason for pretty much anything and I'll probably explain eventually.**

Disclaimer: I am not Stephenie Meyer, as you should all know by now. Although I hope to be at least half the genius she is one day! Tell me if I have a shot, you've read my writing! So basically I don't own anything.

Chapter 12: Approaching Conflict

BPOV (before Noah went to find Edward)

Noah walked ahead of me to hold the door open to my new home. We stepped into the foyer, and I shifted uncomfortably on my feet for a few moments, an unspoken question on the tip of my tongue. He didn't notice my shifting at first, as he was facing the other way. After a few moments however, he turned around and opened his mouth as if to speak. He stopped himself just before the words came out after taking note of my expression.

"What?" At first, I cringed back, the words had been harsh, and I hadn't heard him be so rude before. After a minute, his expression changed back to normal and he continued. "Was there something you wanted to ask?" With his change in demeanor, a little bit of the uneasiness sunk back, but most of it still lingered. I was still suspicious of him, no matter how nice to me he was being. Outside of the Cullens, I had no good experience with vampires. Even with them I had a few not so good experiences as well. The ones I had trusted most had betrayed me, who's to say that one I hardly knew wouldn't do the same? But I knew he was right. Other vampires would try to take advantage of my weaknesses if I didn't have someone to protect me. So despite the fact that I was incredibly wary of him, I needed him for now, so I would push it aside.

"Um, well, I was just wondering why you have a house? Edw... someone told me that normal vampires, you know, the ones that kill humans, couldn't settle down because they would be exposed." I said this uncertainly, not sure if he would be angry with me for prying. "He said that the only reason that he and his family were able to stay in one place for any amount of time was because they didn't kill humans, so people didn't get suspicious as quickly."

A look of understanding passed over his face. "I don't prefer to live in _nature_." He said it as if it were a dirty word. "I live here, but I make sure to hunt a few hours away, and try not to feed in the same place too often. I can't stay in any one place for _too _long, but I prefer this to wandering." I shuddered a bit at his casual reference to killing humans. I didn't understand how he could treat this so callously. With James it had been different. He had been cruel and worthless. I had expected him not to care about human life.

But Noah seemed so kind, most of the time. He even offered to take care of me, which meant he couldn't be too bad right? So what I didn't understand was, how could he be so kind, yet lack any regard whatsoever for human life. Suddenly my image of vampires as good and bad, black and white, faded slightly and a shade of grey came out of it. Noah was kind, yet he killed humans. Before I had separated things into two categories. Good vampires were vegetarians, and bad vampires, well, weren't.

He noticed my pondering expression, and snapped me out of my reverie. "So do you want to see your room?" The question was casual, as if we hadn't just been discussing him killing humans, but I dismissed it once more.

I nodded my head. "Okay, sounds good." Was my reply. I needed something to take my mind off all of these hard subjects. As he led me through the house, I saw the lavish furniture, and many antiques. Everything looked incredibly expensive. It piqued my curiosity. Where had he gotten all of this money?

"How long have you been a vampire?" I had just blurted the question out. It hadn't been _exactly _what had been in my mind, but I supposed it related indirectly. I mean, he would've had to have been a vampire for a long time to be able to have that much money right?

"Oh about two hundred years or so. I was changed in Europe, during the Napoleonic wars. I was British. Did you know I was at the Battle Trafalgar? It was exhilarating. I was changed about a year afterwards. Since that would have been 1806, that means it's been about two hundred and two years." I was in awe once more. He was even older than Edward, almost as old as Carlisle. "I moved to the United States during World War I. I wished to be away from all of the fighting, and America seemed like the best option. I would've been able to avoid the draft, being a vampire, and the actual war was overseas, where I wouldn't have to worry about it getting in the way. And as for you, I know that you haven't been a vampire for very long, but how long exactly..." He trailed off, looking to me with curiosity for the answer.

"Um," I hesitated, counting the days in my mind. I scrunched up my face into a look of concentration. "I was bitten about a week ago, that means if you take away the three days for the change, I've been a vampire for only about four days. Maybe less. It's hard to remember when you don't have to sleep. It changes your perspective of day and night a bit."

"Ah. And you don't need human blood? You're already immune to it? Fascinating. Oh well, here's your room. I'll see you in a bit. Now, however, I'm going hunting." I saw a glimmer in his eyes that seemed odd to me, and he looked like his mind was somewhere else. I doubted that he was really going hunting, but it really was none of my business.

I turned to look at the room he had given me. There was a bed, even though I didn't need one, it was still nice to have. There was a computer, a stereo, and a bookshelf. However, there wasn't anything on the bookshelf yet, but I would take care of that sooner or later. It was all in blue. That sent a pang to my dormant heart. Edward loved blue. Well, Edward loved blue on me, but it was basically the same thing. At least, he had, back when he loved me. I scoffed at that thought. What was I thinking? He had never loved me.

**AN: When Noah left, he was going to catch Edward. This is before what happened last chapter. Now Edwards POV after last chapter.**

EPOV

Since they couldn't knock me out, I saw exactly where they were taking me. It was a warehouse about twenty miles outside of Seattle. I was in a room with steel walls fifteen feet thick on every side of me. Even a vampire couldn't escape a capture like this. Still, I could smell Bella. Her scent, though not causing thirst anymore, now that she wasn't human, was still just as potent to me as ever. She was a few miles away from where they had taken me. However, the scent of her was faint to me, and from what I knew of Bella as a vampire, her heightened senses weren't as acute as the rest of our population. She wouldn't be able to smell me from where she was.

There was one door, but I knew that I couldn't bust it open, and even if I could, there was a group of five of the newborns posted outside of the door. I could take two, maybe three, but not five. I would be defeated for sure, and then I would have no hope of saving Bella.

Out of everything, the thing that made me the most angry was that this other vampire, _Noah_, had tricked my Bella. Bella, even as a vampire was fragile, and the thought that someone could betray her trust was just appalling. After a moment's thought, I realized that was exactly what I had done. I had betrayed her trust when I left her. I clenched my fist as the memory came rushing back. The look in her eyes when I told her that I didn't want her anymore. It was an absurd thought, but she believed it. I could see it in her expression, that she honestly believed that I couldn't want her.

I punched a wall, leaving a dent in the thick steel walls. It was impressive. Maybe if I punched enough, I would eventually be able to break out. But the newborns would most likely be able to hear the racket, and they would catch me before I could get very far.

Just then, I heard the door to my cage creak open. I turned my head to peer into the crimson eyes of none other than Victoria. A menacing growl rumbled deep in my throat.

"YOU!" I screamed in rage as I lunged for her, only to be held back by two of the newborns that had followed her in. My strength was no match for the amounts of human blood that was still coursing through their veins. "You changed her! You ruined her life! Where the hell is she? If you killed her, so help me I'll..." I trailed off, no threats strong enough coming to mind.

"You'll what? Kill me?" She laughed her high pitched, tinkling laugh, that was all the more menacing with its sound of false innocence. "I'd like to see you try. My army would finish you off in a matter of seconds. You might be able to fight one, Edward, but you couldn't take them all. But your Bella is safe, don't worry. She's with Noah. Nothing's going to happen to her. For now at least. I want the pleasure of watching her die, and I want you to have that privilege as well, before I kill you. So you both have a few days of life left. I want to build a false sense of security for her, so she's all the more shocked when Noah and I attack. Though it will hardly be a challenge." Another laugh escaped her lips, "She's so pathetically weak. Not worth the title of vampire. She's a disgrace." With that she turned on her heel and went to walk out. Once she reached the door, she turned her head slightly back towards me, "Enjoy your stay. Hopefully it won't be for much longer." And after that she left, leaving me to my thoughts.

And none of them were pleasant. The only images my brain could come up with were Bella cold and dead. Not as a vampire, but really and truly dead, never to walk the earth again. In a moment, I knew that no matter what it cost me, I could never let that happen.

EPOV (Emmett)

We were all sitting in the main room of the Denali house. We were worried for Edward and Bella, after all we hadn't heard from them in days. All of a sudden Alice sat up straight with a gasp. After a moment, she opened her eyes, looking from the faces of the Denali vampires, back to ours.

"We need to go. Now." Was all she said, but the look in her eyes told us more than a thousand words ever could. Bella and Edward were in danger, and we had to save them. Looking back at Alice, I saw a hardened look on her face as her last statement was proclaimed. "It's going to be war."

**AN: Yay! New chapter! I would just like to say that since it is spring break I will try to update more. Furthermore, I would like to point out that I accept constructive criticism and ideas for my story. In fact, I love it, especially ideas. Unless you are Cheryl. If you are Cheryl, cool it god. I have reasons okay? Noah has a house for a reason. I know that most vampires don't but he was trying to trick Bella and he thought she'd be more comfortable in a house. So just FYI Cheryl, you're getting on my nerves. For the rest of you, keep the reviews coming. (By the way, I know Cheryl, I'm not just this rude to random people) But Cheryl, keep reviewing, just cool it on the questions ok? I still love you all! (Even you Cheryl)**


	14. Chapter 13: Hopeful Strategy

**AN: Okay, so I'm a liar, and I'm sure you all hate me for not updating faster. But at lest you're still reading my story! Don't give up on me! I may have lost some of my interest in this story, but I would never just abandon it! I can't stand authors who do that, and what kind of a hypocrite would I be if I did the same thing? But anyway, on with the story!**

Disclaimer: If I owned Twilight or any of its characters, I would've made Edward leave Bella for me! At the very least, I would have made Bella slightly less whiny! Nope, Twilight belongs to the great Stephenie Meyer! We all worship at her feet.

Chapter 13: Hopeful Strategy

EPOV (Back to Edward this time)

Somehow, in the hours I had been stuck in this hell, my brain had stopped registering the passing of time. At this point, I had no idea how long I had been here, or how much more time I had to rescue Bella. I had been trying to come up with a strategy of how to get out of here and save her. Dents adorned the steel walls I was trapped between, from all of my attempts to break out. That had been the stage when I had gone into a blind rage and tossed strategies and planning out of the window. After a couple of hours of pummeling anything in my line of sight, I had finally come to my senses and got back to planning. It was helpful that I could hear the thoughts of the people/vampires around me.

Paying attention to the newborns' minds outside of the steel prison helped me to learn a lot about Victoria's plans for Bella and I. Obviously, Victoria didn't see me as a threat to her plans, if she would allow so many newborns, untrained in controlling their thoughts, to be around me where I could easily decipher what the knew.

_I can't wait for the fight! _I jerked upright at the word fight coming from one of their thoughts. I knew that Victoria planned to kill Bella and I both, but with herself, Noah, and so many newborns, it really wouldn't be much of a fight. I concentrated harder to figure out what the newborn was thinking. _I hope Victoria's right about those other vampires coming to help. She said that all of the... what were their names again? Oh right, she said that all the Cullen and Denali vampires were coming to rescue the other two. Ha! We'll take care of them easily, she says. It will hardly be a workout, according to Victoria. There are only eleven of them, not including the two we've already got, and there are more than twenty of us. _I blocked out her mind's rambling as she continued to go on and on about how easy it would be. I didn't care about that. But this news, that they were coming for us, gave me hope.

Still, although my family and the Denali clan were much more skilled fighters, twenty to eleven odds still weren't good. Besides, Victoria was bound to be changing more newborns even as I was thinking this. Although saving Bella was the utmost thought in my mind, I still couldn't help the nagging tinge of worry for my family. But they were strong, they could handle themselves. Bella, however, was defenseless, at least by vampire standards. Sure, she could take on your average axe murderer without breaking a sweat, but despite being a newborn herself, there was no way that she could take on even one of the newborns in Victoria's army. That was why I had to find some way to get out of here before it actually came to a fight, so that I could find and protect Bella.

If only I knew what my family was planning, that would only make this so much easier.

APOV

"What did you see Alice, dear?" Came Esme's voice from across the room, once I had made my revelation. What had I seen? Only the most horrifying sight I could've begun to imagine. Bella, standing across from almost twenty newborn vampires, while Edward was being restrained by at least another five. This was not good. Edward could never take on that many newborns, and Bella, with her almost human state, would definitely perish within moments. Thankfully, this wasn't going to happen for at least another couple of days. Whoever was the cause wasn't entirely sure yet as to when they were going to execute their plan. As for who, well, I had a pretty good idea. But at least we weren't too late to save them!

"I saw Edward and Bella against more than twenty newborn vampires," I replied sharply, not intending my voice to come out so harsh, but I was worried and having a hard time controlling my voice at all. "Twenty three, if their numbers don't change. And Victoria was there, along with the vampire I originally saw Bella with. We're going to need to help them. It's going to be a fight." I warned, looking at the faces of my family. I saw Carlisle's face tighten a bit with anxiety. He didn't like violence, especially when the odds were against him and his family. Rosalie looked half annoyed and half concerned. No doubt she was annoyed with Bella, she had never liked her and now we were all going to fight for her. Still, I knew that she would definitely help, because the concern in her eyes was for Edward. She would never let anything happen to her family. Jasper didn't seem to show any emotion, but I knew that was typical for him in situations such as these. He had seen fighting before, and although he didn't seem to like it, he took it with grudging acceptance. Esme's face was unlike anything I had ever seen in her expressions before. There was the usual concern, but underlying that was a sort of grim determination. With her protectiveness over her family, I would loathe to be anyone that stood in the way of their safety. Although Esme was one of the gentlest people I had ever met, there was nothing that angered her more than people putting her family in danger. She would fight to the death to save Edward and Bella. I sighed, knowing what I would see when I finally turned to see Emmett's face. I didn't need any psychic powers to tell me that much. Emmett's eyes lit up, and he looked like a little child in a candy store.

"Bring it on!" He shouted enthusiastically. "This will be fun!" Despite the gravity of the situation, we all couldn't help but roll our eyes at Emmett's blatant enthusiasm for the approaching war.

"Emmett shut up!" Came Rosalie's sharp retort. "Why should we help _her_? It's her own fault she got her self into this mess in the first place, and thanks to her, Edward is being dragged down too!" Everyone in the room pointedly ignored both Rosalie and Emmett's comments. We had all been able to predict their reactions, and just as strongly as we had known what they were originally going to say, we knew that Rosalie would come around, simply because she cared about Edward.

"We're going to need some help." I began hesitantly, looking Carlisle in the eyes before giving a pointed glance to the clan of Denali vampires who had been sitting silently throughout this whole ideal. He gave his head a sharp but small nod, indicating that he knew what I was getting at. "There are too many for us to take on alone. Even with help, it will be a challenge." I bit my bottom lip. I was incredibly worried. All I could think about was the fact that we couldn't possibly get enough help in time and some of us might not survive this encounter. Although I would have been glad for the help of the Denali vampires, I wouldn't protest if they chose not to help us. It was going to be dangerous, there was no denying that.

"Tanya," Carlisle spoke up finally, interrupting my troubled thoughts. He turned toward the leader of the Denali clan. She was the 'Carlisle' of their family, so to speak. "Would you all be willing to help us?"

Tanya looked around at her family for a moment before turning back to Carlisle. "As much as we want Edward to be safe," The family pointedly ignored the fact that she neglected to mention Bella, since she had been after Edward for a while in the past, it wasn't really surprising. "I will not put my family in danger. I'm sorry, but we can't."

That threw me for a moment. I had been sure that they were going to help us, and now we were going to have to take on a newborn army by ourselves. And I was not at all sure that we could come out of this in one piece.

Some of us might not survive. And yet, we would go anyway. Because no matter the cost to our family, we

would die with no regrets to save family.

Edward was family, and since a year ago when Bella entered our lives, so was she.

**AN: Okay, okay! I'm sorry for the fact that it's short and I'm sorry for the fact that it took so long. But I can see that people are starting to lose interest in my stories. I'm not getting near as many hits or reviews! Just tell me, is it because I take so long to update? Or is my story just not interesting anymore? Let me know if you don't like it anymore, because then I will hurry up and end it. I have a plan to draw it out at least another five chapters, possibly ten, but if you don't like it, I suppose I could finish it up in another chapter or two. I'll probably need two. But please REVIEW!! I need to know!**

**P.S. I'm thinking of having them run into the werewolves and the werewolves helping them with the fight. Tell me whether you think that's a good idea or if they should just fight alone. I have ideas either way and either way the outcome will most likely be the same. Let me know!**


	15. Chapter 14: Unexpected Assistance

**AN: I suck, I know but I'm going to try to post a chapter a day until I finish the story. Besides, that's only going to be five more chapters or so, so I think I can handle it. But please don't bite my head off if I don't stick to that. I'm easily distracted. Next time I write a story, I'm going to write the whole thing before I post it.**

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. If I did, I would have never let them make Twilight into a movie. (Shudder) Especially an MTV production.

Chapter 14: Unexpected Assistance

BPOV

I sighed. It had been over two hours since Noah had left and I was entirely bored. About an hour ago, I had decided to explore the house. It was large, to say the least, though not nearly as large as the Cullens' house. The Cullens. That reminded me. I wondered if Edward had been told about my... state... as of yet. Would he be angry if he knew? No, of course not. He left me, so why would he care about what happened to me with him gone. The answer was that he definitely wouldn't.

Still, maybe it wasn't the best idea to just run out on the rest of the family the way I did. Sure, Edward didn't care about me anymore, but the rest of the family must have. At least Emmett and Alice did. After all, they did save me from Victoria. That had to count for something right?

As it was, I knew I couldn't stay with them to live, because it would be too difficult. Edward was still a part of their family, and I was completely convinced that no matter how long my... existence was, I would never be able to get over Edward enough to live with him or see him as a brother.

But still, didn't I at least owe them an explanation? I hadn't exactly been rational when I ran out on them, and they had probably been a bit shocked. In all honesty, I had been to shocked myself to think before running off. With that I made up my mind. I had to go see them, if only to explain why I couldn't see them anymore.

Besides, I was starting to feel uncomfortable in this house, and around Noah. I couldn't tell why for sure, but I sensed that something was very wrong. I felt something around the house and around him that just didn't seem natural. Although I knew I wouldn't completely _leave _him, because he was right in that I needed the protection that he offered me, I believed that some time away for a while might help me to figure out what it was that had me so worried.

With my thoughts settled, I scrambled around the kitchen to find a piece of paper and something to write with. I didn't know how long I would be gone, but I figured Noah wouldn't take kindly to me leaving without telling him anything. Scrambling around in a drawer, I finally found a small sticky note and proceeded to write my message.

_Noah,_

_Though I appreciate all that you have done for me, I think that I need to leave for a while. _

_Don't worry, I will be back as soon as possible, I just feel that I owe my old 'family' some sort _

_of an explanation as to why I can't stay with them. I hope you aren't angry with me, because _

_this is something I need to do. I'll be fine, and I'll come back soon._

_Bella_

After sticking the note to the counter, I ran out the door and headed north, looking back once more at the house before disappearing. I could only hope that he would choose to leave me alone and let me go, otherwise he could catch up with me in an instant. That was why I was hoping to get as far away as possible, and quickly. I was headed for Denali, and I knew that would take at least a day.

A thought occurred to me then. Maybe I could stop in Forks for a short time. I really wanted to check on my friends and family, just to see how they were. Yes, that was a good idea. I would stop to see my family. Surely Noah wouldn't be back for a while, and he wouldn't notice that I was gone. That gave me some time to take a detour to Forks, didn't it?

Quickly, I changed my course slightly so that instead of heading directly north, I was heading west. I knew that I would have to cross a bit of water if I wasn't going to go around it to get to the Olympic Peninsula, but it was the fastest way. Besides, according to what I had been told before, vampires were good swimmers. After all, hadn't Edward said that Carlisle swam to France across the Channel?

Right. After I saw that everyone was alright, I would find the Cullens and give them the explanation that I needed just as much as they did. I would make everything right again.

And then I could go on living, and erase them from my memory.

JPOV (Jacob, thought I'd try something new)

Ugh! I smacked myself in the forehead once again, for what seemed like the millionth time. Still, even though it had only been a few days, I couldn't believe how I had treated Bella. She deserved much better friends than me. I knew that she was a bloodsucker now, and that she was supposed to be my enemy, but Bella had been my best friend. And despite the prejudice I had against those leeches, she was still Bella. Even though I had been desperately trying to convince myself that she wasn't the same person anymore, I knew that I was just kidding myself. I had always loved Bella, and I would still love her no matter what it was that she became.

I knew that she wasn't with that other bloodsucker. _Edward_. I had figured as much when he came to Forks to look for her. Not that I blamed her. I was glad that she wasn't going to forgive that asshole so easily after all that he put her through when he left. She had hardly looked human when she had shown up on my doorstep with those motorcycles. I gave a sharp, humorless laugh at the irony of it all. His leaving had not only cause her to _look _inhuman, it had actually turned her into one of the undead as well.

Anyway, as it was, I knew I had to make things right. If I didn't reconcile with Bella, I would only continue to torture myself until it drove me insane.Now my only issue was finding her. _Damn_, I silently cursed. _If only I hadn't pushed her away when she came. _She had come to me for comfort once more, and instead of helping her instantly as I should have, I turned her away with nothing but hatred.

I transformed into my wolf form, trying to catch the scent, when another scent invaded my acute senses. It was the entire damn clan of bloodsuckers. A low snarl escaped my throat. They were here now to ruin everything, to take Bella away from me when I'd finally accepted what she had become. I took off at a sprint, towards the scent, heading away from Forks so as not to cross the border.

Once I reached the spot where their scents were the strongest, I transformed into my human form and waited for them to come out of the trees. The first one to come out was the tall blond one. _Carlisle._ The name came into the back of my mind. I couldn't remember any of the others, of course, why would I care?The only reason I remembered Carlisle's name at all was because he was the leader.

"Jacob Black." Carlisle announced in surprise. "What are you doing here?" His expression was pleasant. I could only assume that meant that he had not heard of my confrontation with Bella. If he had, he obviously wouldn't be so polite to me.

"I'm looking for Bella. We had a fight, and I want to set things right." There was no point in lying, I figured, but I became a bit worried at how Carlisle's face tightened at the mention of Bella. "She's alright isn't she?" When they didn't answer for a minute, I began to panic.

"Edward and Bella have been kidnaped. Well, Edward has been kidnaped, Bella has been tricked, I think would be a more specific description. I don't even know if she's still alive." Carlisle replied, he appeared calm, but I could see the worry in his eyes. Just then, we heard a rustling of leaves, and Bella came stumbling through the undergrowth.

"Of course I'm still alive." Her face looked like this should've been obvious. "Why wouldn't I be? I came to find you guys so I could make things right _Carlisle._" I noticed that she put extra emphasis on the name, implying that she in no way was talking about me. She didn't need to. I could tell from her expression that she wanted nothing to do with me. She was glaring at me coldly, but then all of a sudden, another feature crossed her face. It was a mix of fear and confusion. "Wait. What do you mean tricked? And Edward's been kidnaped?"

"Yes Bella," Began the short one. The one with the spiky black hair. "Edward was kidnaped by Noah, who has been in league with Victoria this whole time." She continued. "We were going to rescue you. There are over twenty newborns along with Noah and Victoria guarding him though. I don't know if we can take all of them."

"Oh no." Bella sobbed, falling to her knees. "This is all my fault. If only I hadn't run away from you guys, this never would've happened." Her face hardened with resolve then. "Well I'm going after him."

"Bella dear," This comment came from the woman who served as the 'mother' to the rest of them. "You shouldn't come with us. You're not as strong as other vampires and you might get hurt."

"I'll be fine. And I'm coming, whether you all like it or not." That annoyed me. I had always known Bella was stubborn, but this was a bad idea. I had to do something to help them out, if only to keep her safe.

"I can see if the pack will help us." I began slowly. This was probably not going to work, but I could always ask. "Just give me a moment to switch into wolf form and I can talk to Sam." I ran off into the trees before they could answer and shifted into wolf form.

_Sam._ I called out, relieved that he was a wolf right now, that way I didn't have to go track him down. _I need your help. Bella's bloodsucker boyfriend has been kidnaped and there's going to be a war between their coven and an army of newborns._

_Why should we help them? _His thoughts returned to me harshly. _Don't we want them gone?_

_Please Sam, I do want them gone, but Bella is insisting on fighting as well and I cannot say I feel the same about her. Please! _I pleaded.

_Do as you wish Jacob, but I refuse to put the rest of the pack in danger. _I was a bit angry at what he decided, but I knew he wouldn't say anything else. I went back to the clearing as a human to talk to the vampires.

"They won't help." I said hanging my head apologetically. "I truly am sorry, but I will help you all, if only to make up for hurting you Bella." I looked at her desperately, begging her with my expression to understand. She still looked angry, but her expression softened the smallest bit.

"Thank you Jacob," She said softly. And that was what I was here for.

Now we would fight.

**AN: For all of you who are anxious, the fight is going to be next chapter. But bear with me, I don't really know how to write a fight scene. Again I say I would consult my Eclipse book for advice but I don't have it. Agh! I need a new copy, but I'm waiting to buy the special edition. May 31!! If you have any ideas for how to write a fight scene, just let me know. I'll try to update faster. This one came in about a day though! Aren't you all proud?**


	16. Chapter 15: Determined Journey

**AN: I am so sorry! I fully intended to keep my promise and update every day, so I started this chapter the next day and I was on a roll!! I got through Edward's POV in probably 5 or 10 minutes, but then I started Bella's POV and I got complete writer's block. I was going to write the fight scene but for the life of me I just couldn't figure out how to start it. So I just stopped trying and I guess that will come next chapter. Sorry if this chapter is short, I just wanted to prove to you guys that while it might take me a while to come up with chapters, I won't quit the story until it's done! Please review!**

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. Hopefully someday I'll write something that I will be able to own, but for now, it's just fanfiction for me!

Chapter 15: Determined Journey

EPOV

I could hear them through the walls. Noah and Victoria, that is. They were outside my prison. At first, I was confused as to why they would be here. That was before I heard their conversation, and their thoughts. Noah's thoughts were the first to invade my mind, and at the moment, they were the best thing I had ever heard.

_How could she have left? Victoria will kill me. I should've kept her under better security, but I thought she trusted me. _At these thoughts, I almost jumped for joy, but I had learned in life not to get too excited until you know the whole story. Then he spoke.

"Victoria, Bella left. She went to go find those vampires, the Cullens." His voice shook a little bit and a part of me understood his fear. Victoria could be a bit intimidating, though if I ever got my hands on her, she should be the one afraid of me, after all that she has done to Bella. I waited impatiently to hear her response.

"What!" She almost roared. Lowering her voice again she continued, "How the hell did you let her leave? You were supposed to be watching her!" _Stupid jackass. I knew I should've done this alone. Then this imbecile would've never let Bella get away. Still, I needed him, she never would've trusted me._ At their words I was just getting more and more hopeful. Bella had gotten away from them, and she was going to find my family.

"She said she'd come back, so apparently she trusted me. I didn't do my job wrong, you just underestimated her." Noah snapped back at Victoria. _Although now she'll never come back, those idiot Cullens will tell her the truth and she'll never come back here. Or wait. _I could almost hear a lightbulb going off in his head.

"Victoria," He began. "You'll get your chance, she'll come back." He said this with complete certainty.

"You idiot! She'll never come back. The Cullens will tell her what we're up to and she'll never return then." I almost felt like laughing at Victoria's words. They were so true! And now her plans were ruined and Bella was safe. But Noah's next argument made my blood run cold.

"Oh she'll come back alright. And you want to know why? Because we have her little boyfriend, and the Cullens know it too. You really think she'll just sit back and let us kill him?" And no matter what I had done to Bella in the past, I knew that he was right. Bella would never just sit back and let me die, she was too kindhearted, and knowing her, she would put the blame for all of this on herself. But it was all my fault that she was in this mess, that she was a vampire, and no matter what it took, I would escape and I would protect her until the very end.

BPOV

I was alone again, or at least, the Cullens had left once more. Now I was stuck alone with Jacob. We had set off immediately to go rescue Edward, but since I was slow in comparison to the Cullens, Jacob offered to go with me so that they could run ahead without me slowing them down. Though I would rather have ran ahead with the Cullens to get to Edward as quickly as possible, I was glad to have a chance to talk to Jacob and try to fix our ruined friendship.

"Bella," I started at the sound of Jake saying my voice. "What was wrong with you? I've been saying your name for like a minute." I realized that I must have been in a trance of sorts because I had been completely unaware of my surroundings.

"Sorry," I replied. "Was there something you wanted to say?" I pressed when he didn't reply for a moment. He looked up, seemingly startled, and I realized that he had been staring dejectedly at the ground in front of him for a while.

"Oh right," He quickly answered. "It's just that, I know I apologized earlier, but I just wanted you to know that I meant every word. I will love you no matter what you are. Being a werewolf, I just had a harder time accepting that my best friend had been turned into a vampire. My kind don't see vampires as people, but I can't bring myself to see you as dead and gone when you're standing right here talking to me." After his rant broke off, I was going to comfort him, but he quickly cut me off with an urgent plea. "But do you really have to do this? You could get yourself killed Bella! It was bad enough for me when I saw you as basically dead, think of how I'll feel if you're really dead and gone forever! And frankly, I don't think that he deserves your pity after everything he's put you through." I was so shocked at his statement, that I didn't take time to consider my words before I lashed out brutally.

"I'm not doing this because I _pity _him Jacob. I love him!" After a moment, I realized that my voice was much too sharp, and I tried to make my tone kinder. "I couldn't live with myself if something happened to him, just as you're saying you couldn't live with yourself if something happened to me. And _frankly_," I spat scathingly, "You don't deserve to be my friend either after everything you said to me Jacob. If he doesn't deserve my pity, then there's no way in heck that you do either. But I'm giving it to you anyway, just as I'm forgiving him. I'd do this for you too Jake." By this point we had both stopped, and we were staring at each other trying to get some point across. Jacob looked away first, seeming to see in my eyes that this was something I needed to do, and I was relieved. I needed his help.

"So are we going?" I asked softly, and this time, Jacob's response was determined.

"Yea, let's go fight." And for the first time in a while, my lips curved into a genuine smile.

**AN: Oh my gosh!! I'm so excited that I finished a chapter!! Well, this story's coming to an end now, I'll probably have two or three more chapters, maybe more if I absolutely can't end it. So, I put up a poll on my page! For all of you who liked my story, I put up a poll on my page asking which category I should write for next. Please, please vote, because if you don't, then I won't write another story. I will keep that poll up until May 24 and then I will put in another poll with more specific choices that you can vote on for two weeks after. So please vote and I promise that you'll like my next story! (I hope!)**


	17. Chapter 16: Shocking Proposition

**AN: Okay, so I left the poll up longer than I intended. But that's alright. I'll probably leave it up until I finish this story, and then just pick what to write about more specifically on my own. I promise you that I will finish this story within the next month, since I've been writing at least 2,000 words a day since summer started. However, I will not only be writing this story. I made an account on fictionpress and I would really appreciate it if some of you went and saw it there. My user website is www . fictionpress . com/ u/613372/ without the spaces. If you like my writing style, I really think you'll like my original stories.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, blah blah blah, you know the drill. But I do own a "Team Edward" t-shirt! ;)

Chapter 16: Shocking Proposition

EPOV

Being inside my steel prison, I heard their thoughts long before anything actually happened.

I heard Alice, _Edward hold on._

I heard Emmett, _I can't wait to kick some major vampire ass!_

I couldn't hear anyone else. That puzzled me. Were they the only people who cared about my safety? And where was Bella? I figured I probably wouldn't be able to read her thoughts now any more than I could have when she was human, but Alice's mind showed nobody besides her and Emmett coming to my aid. In a way, I was relieved. I was definitely relieved that Bella was nowhere near where the fight was going to take place, but I didn't think that Alice and Emmett could fight all of these vampires alone!

All of a sudden, the shocked thoughts of the newborns reached my mind. Alice and Emmett had just arrived. Still, through all of the thoughts I dissected, I couldn't detect any fear. And I knew why. Although Emmett was incredibly intimidating, Alice hardly painted a frightening picture, and it was about ten against two. I knew that Alice and Emmett didn't stand a chance, and it confused me as to why they would've come alone.

After I had pondered that for a second, I felt a change in the tenor of people's thoughts. Alice and Emmett were guarding their thoughts, almost as if there was a secret they didn't want me to know about, but the newborn's thoughts were in a panic. And after a moment, I saw why. I saw the door to my cell ripped off its hinges by Carlisle —who had somehow come in with the rest of my family when I wasn't paying attention**— **just in time to see one of the newborns go flying through the air, dragged by some unseen force.

Startled, I detected another person's mind, which confused me more than I had ever been in my life. Jacob Black? Why would Jacob Black, a mere human, be in the middle of a fight of vampires? I turned my head to where the tenor of the thoughts was coming from, just in time to see a russet colored giant wolf fling a newborn into the air, where another unseen force picked it up and flung it away once again. Jacob Black was a werewolf? That was the only thing I could process in my mind at the time.

Still, when my eyesight moved to the figure he was protecting, all thoughts flew out of my mind immediately except for one. _Bella. _I watched in shock as she concentrated on the newborns, who one by one went flying miles away as she concentrated on them**.**

Before I knew it, they were all gone, every last one of them. Still, I stood there in shock as Bella came up and took my hand.

"Edward," she whispered, staring intently at my face as I gazed unseeingly past her. "Edward, are you alright?" I nodded before turning to look at her, she was exactly the same as she had been before. She was the same Bella. Yet she was definitely a vampire, her crimson eyes, slightly blackened with thirst gazed back at me. She placed a hand on my cheek, as if trying to reassure herself that I really was there, and then without warning, she jumped into my arms, sobbing against my chest.

After a moment, she seemed to collect herself, pulling away from me and turning to face the other way, wiping at her eyes to rid herself of the nonexistent tears.

"I'm sorry." She said. "I know you probably don't want to see me or touch me but I'm just glad you're safe." The words she was saying were tearing me up inside. Not want to see her? I reached out a hand to grab her arm, and pulled her back against me.

"Of course I want to see you Bella. Why would I ever not want to see you?" Our embrace once again didn't last long as she pulled away again.

"You left me, in case you didn't remember. Forgive me if I thought that meant you didn't want me." I felt an odd sensation in my chest, as if my heart was failing, even though I knew it hadn't worked in over eighty years.

"Bella, how could I ever not want you? I was trying to keep you safe when I left, I swear it." She looked away again, not meeting my eyes. Then she turned back, glaring at me fiercely.

"How do I know you won't do it again though? You never wanted me to be a vampire, but guess what, I am! There's absolutely nothing you can do about it!" I felt so bad for hurting her, but I realized what I needed to do to make her see reason.

"Bella..." I began, taking her hand. But I was interrupted by Alice.

"Edward. Maybe you need to give Bella some time to think." She began quietly, and her soft tone of voice only enraged me further. What did Bella need to think about? I was here, and I loved her, and I wanted us to be together forever! How come nobody could understand that. I looked to Bella, but she was looking at Alice, her expression dripping with gratitude, but when she went to pull her hand away, I held fast to it. Bella could do whatever she wanted, but she was going to hear me out.

"Bella..." I started again, this time getting to one knee. Bella's eyes widened and she brought the hand I wasn't holding up to her mouth. I quickly glanced around at my family members, whose expressions all basically mirrored hers, except for Emmett of course. I could see his expression was thrilled, and he had the thoughts to match.

_Way to go Edward! I never knew you had it in you! Ask her, ask her, ask her! _Emmett's thoughts made him seem like such a little kid, but that was okay, because I knew in his heart that was what he was anyway.

"Bella, I love you more than anything in this world. I left you for your own safety, and I really need you to believe that. I've wanted to do this for so long, but I could never stand putting you in danger. Since you're one of us now, the danger isn't really there anymore, is it?" Here, I chuckled nervously. "Bella, will you please be my wife?"

Although I knew everyone had seen it coming, I still heard gasps echoing around us, Bella's the loudest.

**AN: Alright... here's chapter 16!! Sorry it's short. Review please!!**

**Here are my stories that are on fictionpress**

**Assassin's Failure: 1****st**** chapter up **

**Summary:**

"**Who do you have to kill?""The royal family" Alexander's latest mission is impossible, even if he is one of the greatest assassins in the world, second to only his family. Especially when the princess starts to get to him.  
**

**Definitely NOT Sleeping With the Enemy... I Think: 1****st**** chapter up tonight **

**Summary**

**Rae lived a perfectly normal life until her mom was killed by a vampire. Bitter, she joins a group of vampire slayers, but on a mission, she is kidnaped by a vampire claiming she's his mate. The same one that killed her mother.**

**Again, go to my page www . fictionpress . com/ u/613372/ to get to my stories. Please leave a review if you read them. I accept anonymous even if you don't have an account.**


	18. Chapter 17: Surprising Responses

**AN: Okay... so with the website for my fictionpress stories, something happened. A part of the URL that was on it when I wrote the chapter, didn't actually show up when I posted it on the site! So I changed it on the last chapter, and gave you a different URL, but for those of you who didn't check, I'm going to give you the URL for my user page again here.**

**User page: www . Fictionpress . Com / u / 613372 (Minus the spaces)**

Disclaimer: I'm not Stephenie Meyer, I have no claims to the Twilight books.

Chapter 17: Surprising Responses

BPOV

I stood there, one hand in Edward's, the other over my mouth, for the longest time, thinking about what he had said. He wanted me to marry him? Inwardly, I blanched at the word. Marriage. I had been raised to automatically shy away from such a union. If there was anything Renee hated more than teenage marriage, I sure couldn't think of it now.

I loved Edward more than anything, and yet, I didn't know if I could trust him after all that he had put me through. How was I to know, despite what he said, that he wouldn't leave me again? That he wouldn't just grow bored after a while, the way he did the first time. I knew, even as a vampire, I wasn't anything incredible. Sure, my powers made up for some of my weakness, but still, I felt inferior to all of the Cullens. I wasn't sure if I wanted to feel like that for the rest of my life. I loved all of them, Edward more than any, but I couldn't take being hurt again either way. I couldn't take it if they left me once again, if Edward left me for someone more beautiful.

After a moment, I had made up my mind. I saw Alice's expression out of the corner of my eye and it made me cringe. But I had to do it.

"Edward... I... I just can't. I can't risk getting hurt again." And with that, I turned and ran, leaving all of my problems behind in the dust, or so I thought.

Jacob's POV

A hope rose in me at Bella's response. She had said no to the bloodsucker. I still had a chance. Looking around at the Cullens, at their desolate expressions, I couldn't stay there one second longer. I was elated. They were completely crushing my mood. I phased into a wolf, and sprinted into the woods, intent on finding Bella and figuring out my chances with her. I really didn't even mind that she was a vampire anymore. I realized that she still was my Bella.

When I smelled her getting closer in the distance, I began pushing my speed to reach her more quickly. I really was glad that she was slower than the other bloodsuckers, in some ways, because I could catch her more easily. As I pulled up alongside her, I saw her frantically turn her head towards me, before realizing that it was me and exhaling in relief before I stepped in front of her to block her and we both came to a stop.

"Bella..." I began, but I was quickly cut off.

"Jacob, I don't want to talk right now. Please." I didn't want to listen to her, but the look on her face, so lost, made me think twice. She needed some quiet, and I could see that she was struggling. I knew she didn't want me to talk right now, but I would be with her when she needed someone to talk to. I was sure of that. So I nodded, and we ran.

Edward's POV

_She said no. She said no, and she left. _Those were the only thoughts that were running through my mind after Bella had run away. I couldn't believe it. I knew that Bella had every right to be mad at me, and to never forgive me, but I had always imagined that she would. Bella was just so kind, and I couldn't imagine her hurting anybody. Then again, maybe I was just the exception to the rule.

I could see all of the faces of my family, their expressions just as dejected as I was sure my own was. They all loved Bella, and she couldn't just leave. If not for my sake, then for theirs. I could also hear their thoughts, filled with pity for me. Emmett and Alice looked the most disappointed of them all. To them, Bella had become things that they hadn't ever had before.

To Emmett, Bella was a little sister, someone who he could protect. To Alice, Bella was the best friend that she had never had, not even in Rosalie. Esme and Carlisle looked like they had just lost a daughter. I wasn't going to let this happen to my family. We all loved Bella, and I wasn't going to let her just leave like that. Of course, it was her decision if she wanted to be with me or not, but I was going to bring her back for the sake of my family, no matter what the outcome.

**AN: I'm sorry that all of my chapters have been so short lately, this one especially, but I just haven't been in the mood to write this story! Plus, in this chapter, I mostly just wanted to explain the reactions of who I consider to be the most important characters. For all of you Edward fans out there, don't worry. This is most definitely a Bella Edward story, and I plan on keeping it that way. I might, however, throw a little bit of Bella Jacob in for a while just to stretch out the story. What do you think? Finish quickly or drag it out a few more chapters? Review, and again, check out my other stories on fictionpress. I'm three reviews from updating both of them, so you all could make that happen!**


	19. BREAKING DAWN

**AN: ATTENTION!!**

**This is just an author's note I am writing because I just finished Breaking Dawn and I would really like someone to discuss it with. If you have finished the book, PM me or add me on msn at kim mcc 3 hotmail . Com without the spaces obviously! I will post another chapter to replace this author's note later today or possibly tomorrow! **

**Thanks a lot!!**

**Kim**


	20. Chapter 18: Reluctant Promises

**AN: I'm very sorry to have taken so long to update, but I honestly could not think of how to continue. Now, however, I have an idea and I'm going to go with it. **

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from the Twilight series. My stories on fictionpress... www . fictionpress . com/s/2529456/1/AssassinsFailure and www . fictionpress . com/s/2530533/1/DefinitelyNOTSleepingWiththeEnemyIThink however, are completely mine so check them out!!

Chapter 18: Reluctant Promises

BPOV

I looked around the hotel room that Jake had acquired for the two of us. I was relieved that there were two beds, at least that left for a little less awkwardness. I knew my answer to Edward had given Jake a new hope that I wish he wouldn't have. Of course, I had no clue what my future was going to bring, and Jake and I might end up together, now that there was no hope for me and Edward.

I heard the door open and shut behind me, and I turned around, coming face to face with Jake. He looked slightly worn out, dark circles beginning to form under his eyes, and guilt rushed through me.

"Jake, if you want to get some sleep, that's fine with me." I suggested, gesturing towards the bed. "I need some quiet time to think anyway." He nodded, but said nothing as he flopped across the bed. I made my way over to the bed near the window and laid back, closing my eyes.

"Bella?" I heard the voice from across the room, and I stood up and walked over to the bed Jake was sleeping on.

"What is it Jacob?" I asked, sitting on the edge of his bed. He reached up and pulled me to lay down next to him.

"Bella, promise you'll stay with me? You won't just leave like before, will you? I couldn't stand not knowing if you were okay. I missed my best friend. You already know I feel more for you than just a friend, but all the same, I am fine with just being a friend for now. I just don't want to lose you." His voice sounded so worn out and pleading, I hated to think of what I had put him through.

"I will Jake. I won't make you worry like that again, I promise. Now sleep, you sound exhausted." I scolded him halfheartedly.

"Only if you stay here." He mumbled, already half asleep.

"I have no intention of moving." I promised, trying to get comfortable with the two of us laying in one bed.

I lay there for a few minutes before I heard Jacob's loud snores penetrate the silence of the room. Sighing, my concentration broken, I got up from the bed, stepping through the curtains covering the window and out the door to the balcony. I rested my arms on the railing and stared up at the sky, completely lost in my thoughts. Though part of me was beginning to wish that I hadn't rejected Edward, I couldn't bring myself to regret the decision I had made. It was the best for everyone involved. I didn't think I could ever stop loving Edward, but it was obvious that the same didn't apply to him. He had left me, and he left me broken. I really didn't think that I would be able to take it if he were to do that to me again, as I had barely survived the first time.

I turned around quickly as a hand gripped my shoulder. I hadn't even heard anyone coming up behind me, despite my acute senses. At the sight of the person behind me, I let out a startled gasp.

"Ed...Edward." I stuttered, taking a quick step back away from him, being mindful of the railing behind me. "Wh...what are you d...doing here? I told you that I can't be with you." As I spoke, my voice got firmer, and my words got less broken up. I saw a look of pain quickly cross his features, and I turned around, still not able to bear seeing him in pain. After taking a minute to compose himself, he finally spoke up.

"Bella," I stiffened when I heard my name escape his lips, the sound strangled and filled with hurt. He spun me around and reached for me once more. I shied away from his outstretched hand. I didn't think that I would be able to tolerate it if he actually touched me. If we were to make contact, I was absolutely sure I would give in to whatever he chose to demand or ask of me. He seemed to notice my resistence, yet he made no move to heed my wishes. As his hand made contact with my shoulder, I was momentarily stunned. I made no move to resist as I was dragged forward into his arms, I still hadn't recovered from the contact.

"Bella." He repeated, his arms not loosening in the slightest despite the fact that I was beginning to struggle a bit now. I knew he wouldn't hurt me or anything, but I just needed to end the contact before I cracked. "Bella, love, I know you hate me."

"I don't..." I began, but he cut me off.

"But will you please come back? I need you in my life, even if we're not together, and even more important than that, you leaving has really hurt my family. I can and will wait for you forever, but I can't bear to see my family torn apart." I looked into his eyes, noting the sincere look emanating from them. I realized he might be right. Originally, I would've never suspected that I would have that strong of an impact on anybody, but I realized that I was just as much family to the Cullens as they were to me. Alice was my best friend and sister, Emmett was my big brother, Carlisle and Esme were my surrogate parents, Jasper was... well I wasn't sure what he was, but he was like family all the same. The only one who may not want me back was Rosalie, but I didn't want to hurt anyone in the Cullen family.

"I... Edward I don't hate you... It's just that this... us... is hard on me. I was so depressed when you left me, and I'm just terrified that it will happen again. Plus I... I promised Jake that I wouldn't leave him again. I can't break a promise to him." I was close to tears by now, seeing the pleading look in his eyes. I couldn't take it.

"He can come Bella, but please just come back to us. We need you." I was cracking, I could already tell, and what he said next, so quietly I almost didn't hear, finished the job. "I need you." I cracked. I couldn't handle hurting him anymore.

"Alright." I agreed quietly. "I'll come back."

"Thank you Bella!" He exclaimed, pulling me into a bone-crushing embrace, then making to jump of the balcony with me. I held back.

"In the morning." I commanded, pointedly looking into the hotel room where Jacob was sound asleep. He sighed resignedly, but gave me a soft smile as he replied.

"In the morning then." And he jumped off the balcony and into the night.

**AN: So here's my new chapter. I know it's short, but I wanted to get done by tonight, plus, short seems to be my thing these days. I just don't have the patience to write long chapters. This one took me all day, because I was getting distracted. But one thing I need to point out is that this is **_**not **_**a Bella Jacob story. I repeat, this is NOT a Bella Jacob story. This is Bella Edward all the way. Just thought I'd clear some things up. Well let me know what you think, Review please!! **


	21. Chapter 19: New Beginnings

**AN: I notice all of the times that I've said I'm almost done with this story, and yet here I am, still updating. But now that I have sent this story in the direction it's going, I won't be able to stop and finish for a while, as the plot I have set myself on, will not be complete until Bella and Edward get back together, which will probably take some time. Oh well. You all won't be upset if doesn't end right away, will you?**

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, or anything related to Twilight. That honor goes to Stephenie Meyer, though I can live without owning Breaking Dawn.

Chapter 19: New Beginnings

BPOV

I sat on the floor next to Jacob's bed for the rest of the night, after quickly going out to hunt and clear my head, thinking about my conversation with Edward. I wanted nothing more to tell him that I had reconsidered, but I didn't want to hurt him or his family any more than I already had. My gaze moved once more to Jake's sleeping face. His expression held nothing more than the picture of innocence, and I wondered what kind of monster I would have to be to hurt him as well. I knew that I had no options, either way I was going to hurt somebody. But why did it have to be Jacob? The one person who had done nothing more than love me and try to be there for me through all of the hard times I had gone through.

Still, I knew that Edward's solution was the most reasonable. After all, being a newborn vampire that hasn't quite discovered her full potential, wouldn't it be best for me to be around other vampires? And I didn't think I could live with any other vampires, it would feel to much like cheating on my family. I knew I had to go back to them, but I didn't know how to tell Jacob.

As the sun began finding its way through the curtains, I noticed that he began to stir. I sighed, resigning myself to the fact that in a few moments I would need to have a conversation with him that I really didn't want to have. I watched him roll over, feeling the edge of the bed and jerking upright all of a sudden.

"Bella?!" He said anxiously, quickly rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and scanning the room. His shoulders noticeably relaxed when he saw me sitting by the edge of the bed. "What are you doing down there?" He asked.

"Couldn't sleep." I chuckled nervously. He raised an eyebrow at my joke but didn't comment. "Look, there's something I have to tell you. Edward stopped by here last night and..." Before I could continue, he stood up and started pacing in a rage and interrupted me.

"I _knew _he wouldn't leave you alone. Stupid bloodsucker can't even go one whole day without coming back to play with your emotions." I was hurt by Jacob's assumption, oddly as if his insult toward Edward were a personal attack towards me. I knew it was irrational, but I was still filled with an intense urge to protect Edward, no matter how much I tried to convince myself and others that he didn't matter to me.

"He wants me to come back." I interrupted Jacob as he interrupted me, and continued, ignoring the furious look on his face. "And I'm going." I winced as the look on his face turned to hurt. "You don't understand, he said I could bring you with me."

He looked nothing more than defeated. "Yeah? And what about us? Are you two just going to..." I knew that he was trailing off because it hurt him to much to continue, and I felt absolutely horrible for that.

"Jacob." My voice was gentle, with effort. I was aggravated that he didn't understand that I couldn't handle there being an 'us' and at the same time, I was offended that he would think I was so weak as to race back into Edward's arms that way. "There is no us. We're just friends. And I'm not going to get back together with Edward. I can't handle a relationship right now, and the both of you will have to understand that, because if the two of you fight, I won't be able to handle it. Do you understand? It will just hurt me more." Looking around the room to avoid making eye contact with him, I noticed a note on the bedside table. I wasn't sure how it got there without me noticing it, but it might have been when I left in the night to hunt briefly. I walked over to it and picked it up.

_Bella,_

_We will all be heading back to Forks today. _

_Please just meet us there later at the house. _

_Be careful not to run into anyone you know._

_Love, _

_Edward_

I sighed, after reading the note. I had thought that if I was going to reconnect with the Cullens, it would be somewhere that I wouldn't have to worry about seeing people who knew me. Still, I turned to Jacob, who was still pacing.

"Jacob, they're meeting us in Forks. I'm leaving. You're welcome to come with me. That is, if you want. I could really use the support." With that, I grabbed my bag and walked out the door. When I got to the checkout counter at the hotel, the man at the desk looked up, then down at something on his desk.

"Are you Bella Swan?" He asked. I froze, immediately wary.

"Yes. Is there something wrong?"

"No, nothing. But a man came here earlier, and asked me to give you these." With that he picked up a set of keys. "He left the car in the nearest parking spot to the left, he said." I grabbed the keys from him, but I was still cautious.

"Did he say his name?" I asked. I didn't think either Noah or Victoria was still alive, but I didn't want to be taking any chances.

"Yes he said to tell you it was from an Edward Cullen. He had bronze colored hair and sort of gold eyes." With that, I sighed in relief. It had been Edward. I was safe. I walked out of the hotel and approached the expensive looking vehicle in the car lot. Being absolutely naive when it came to cars, I had absolutely no idea what I was looking at, but knowing Edward, it probably cost a fortune.

As I approached the driver's side door, I heard footsteps approaching, and I turned to see Jacob catching up to me, and then making a move to get in the passenger seat. I chose not to ask him why he changed his mind, I just sent him a smile, and mouthed 'thanks'. With that, we began our journey back to Forks, and to a new life that seemed oddly familiar.

**AN: Okay, I have a new policy with my stories. I have two on this site, and two on fictionpress, so I will be updating every story once a month, one update a week. My other story on this site should be out in two weeks. But, there is a catch. I will definitely update by November 6, which is a month from today, but the chapter may come earlier based off the number of reviews I get.**

**To get the story on:**

**October 31: 8 reviews (and since it's Halloween, I'll throw in a special treat)**

**October 24: 10 reviews**

**October 17: 15 reviews**

**October 10: 20 reviews**

**By Wednesday: 25 reviews**

**Also, as a special treat, for the first person who reviews, I will put something special of their request in the next chapter. So if you're the first to review, I will PM you and ask you what you want me to put in the next chapter for you, so we don't spoil it for the rest of the readers ;).**

**So I now put in your hands!! Review please!!**


	22. Chapter 20: Enlightening Reunions

**AN: I would just like to profusely apologize for the incredible lateness of this chapter. I am so angry with myself, that I feel like I don't even deserve to write this story or call it mine. So, here's my pathetic excuse. I was doing NaNoWriMo, which was my excuse for not updating all of my other stories as well, but they got a notice, which I unfortunately forgot to put up on this story. Still, add to that the fact that NaNoWriMo has been over for a half a month, and I still suck. But after writing 50,000 words in one month, I was a little sick of writing. Yes, I know, the horror. And then, when I tried to write, I got distracted, and had writer's block. So those were my measly excuses. Hope you all will forgive me, and I have a special surprise at the end that will hopefully make up for my lapse. **

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, blah, blah, blah. You know the spiel.

Chapter 20: Enlightening Reunions

"Bella!" Alice shrieked as she came racing out of the house to greet me when Jacob and I pulled into the Cullens' driveway. I smiled slightly to myself. If anything, at least I knew that I would once again have my best friend in my life, even if I was going to give up my freedom. I did not want to see it that way, but it was how I felt. Ever since Edward showed up at the hotel begging me to come back, I felt like I was once again brought under his spell, and a part of me feared I would not escape this time.

Then there was the matter of Jacob, my best friend and protector. He was the one who was there for me when Edward left me, and I knew I was going to have a hard time reconciling the life I was going to have now, with the life I had before. One thing I was certain of, however, was that I could not leave Jacob. Although he refused to stay with the Cullens, preferring to live back in La Push with his father, I did not want to completely cut him out of my life. I made him promise me to come see me every day, citing the excuse that I did not know how I would bear my new life without him in it. He had offered me a place to stay with him in his home, but I knew that I would not be welcome there. Billy did not approve of vampires, and he had warned me to stay away from the Cullens. No doubt he would believe that I brought everything on myself. I did not want to have to live with him and endure his scorn. As much as I feared Edward, I knew that the Cullens would be the best option for me right now, since they knew me inside and out, and while Jacob did as well, the Cullens actually knew what I was going through.

They could relate. I knew that no matter how hard Jake could possibly try to understand what I was going through, he would still always come up short. That was another one of the reasons I didn't want him around. It seemed unfair to remind him of his shortcomings when it came to me, when all he devoted himself to was making me happy.

And being around him did make me happy. In fact, I wasn't sure that Edward could even convince me to come back to him, and to forget everything we had gone through and go back to the way things were. I knew that was what he was hoping for, but I did not know if I could let it happen. Jacob and I, however, had become increasingly close during the last months, and he was a part of my life that I could not cut out now, no matter how the circumstances had changed.

Besides, he had promised to always be there for me, and while I had given him quite the shock with my new appearance, I knew that deep down inside he was still my Jacob, and still devoted to my happiness. He had quickly reconciled his actions and I had forgiven him. He was my lifeline, I needed him in my life to stay happy, and it seemed as though Edward being in my life caused me nothing but turmoil. I took a deep breath and steeled myself before getting out of the car. I was excited to see Alice, and the majority of the other Cullens, but I was definitely not overly eager to meet up with Edward once again. I wanted to stay independent, but I knew that would be hard to do if Edward wanted me back. In fact, it would be near impossible. A part of me wanted to go back to Jacob and take him up on his offer of a relationship, because I knew that being in a relationship with Jacob would at least give Edward some minor incentive to back off, though knowing him, it would only cause him to push harder.

I stepped out of the car, immediately being bowled over by a short flurry of black hair and pale skin. I chuckled to myself at Alice's enthusiasm before returning her hug tightly and telling her how happy I was to see her. I knew that the feeling was definitely returned, and it brought tears to my eyes to have someone around who cared about me. She pulled away and looked at me, a stern expression seeming to cross her face. I looked at her, puzzled. What could I have done that would cause her to look at me in such a manner, as though I had done something to deeply disappoint her. The last time I had seen her was when...

When I had left Edward, telling him that I would never return. Of course, I should have known. A foolish part of me had thought that she would understand my decision to remove Edward from my life, would know that it was the only way for me to feel remotely alright after everything that had happened. But I could not forget that Alice was in all aspects Edward's sister, and the Cullens had always been fiercely protective toward anyone they considered to be family.

I had been considered family once, to the Cullens, at least most of them. I remembered all of the kind words I had received from them, Edward the most. I had never felt more a part of anything in my life. Esme was the overprotective caring mother that I had never had. Of course, I did have a mother, and I loved her more than anything, but in our relationship I was always the adult, never given a chance to fully appreciate the wonders of having someone else care for you. The same thing applied to Charlie. But even more in his case was the lack of conversation. For the longest time, I had preferred the silence, believing that was how a family should be, because I knew that was the way Charlie was, and he had passed that trait on to me.

But I spoke with Carlisle often, and he was like the talkative father I had never had. Emmett was the big brother, the one who was always looking out for me. Alice had been my best friend and sister, but now I panicked as the possibility occurred that my falling out with Edward may have negatively impacted all of my relationships with the Cullen family. I was angry with myself for blowing everything, but at the same time just as angry with Edward. He was the one who had left me, the one who had caused me to close in on myself and shut everyone out of my life for the longest time when he had left me. I had not been whole inside since my birthday, the day when he had decided that he needed to leave, that he didn't love me anymore. I was not sure what to make of his claims of a mistake, that he hadn't meant to hurt me and that he wanted to fix it. I was even less sure of how I could deal with fixing it, because fixing my relationship with Edward would only serve to break me once again.

"Bella how could you do this to Edward?" Alice's demanding voice shook me out of my reverie. She had one hand on her hip and she was giving me a very serious expression. If I hadn't known that she was truly angry, it may have been almost comical. To see someone of her height stand up to me, who hovered at least a head taller than her, was amusing, to say the least. I opened my mouth to speak and answer her question, but she shoved one graceful finger in the middle of my chest.

"No!" She said. "Listen. You need to apologize to my brother. He is really hurting right now, and it's all because you rejected him." The way she said it made me sound like the awful person, and it made me incredibly angry. Hadn't she seen the state I was in after he had left me? Did she not know what I had gone through, the incredible pain that had tore through me every moment that I thought of the way my one and only love had been unfairly torn from me? Did she not understand what it felt like to be utterly rejected? He rejected me. I was only returning the favor. After all, it couldn't hurt all that much, he had said he didn't love me. The only thing my rejection would hurt would be his ego.

"Alice." I said firmly, bringing her tirade to a halt. She looked at me questioningly, though the hard glint had not left her eyes, and I knew that I was not forgiven. "Alice _he _left _me_. How can you expect me to just take him back as though nothing has ever come between us. He told me that he didn't love me. That's something that I can't just let go of. Besides, I have Jake in my life now, and I can't just abandon him." My voice cracked. Some of the hardness in her eyes softened then, but I knew that she would not give up on her mission to get Edward and I back together, much as I hoped that she would. She gathered me in a hug, and I hugged her back, tears leaking from my eyes. Despite all of the time that had gone by, his rejection still hurt, and discussing it just brought all of the pain back to the present. I began crying in earnest then, hugging Alice tightly to my frame, when I heard a loud gasp coming from the doorway.

I looked up to see Edward, standing in the doorway to the house, presumably to come greet me now that he knew I had already talked to Alice. He had been the one to gasp, and I noticed the pain in his eyes as he watched me cry, and it broke my heart. I did not know why I had such sympathy for him after all that he had done, but it was still there. I broke away from Alice and made my way to the front door, face to face with Edward, the tears still running down my cheeks. He brought up a hand, brushing the tears from my cheeks, his eyes filled with a pain I had never seen before in my life, except on myself when he had left me.

"I'm sorry Bella." He whispered, grabbing me by the shoulders and pulling me to him tightly in an embrace. I stiffened for a moment at the contact I had gone so long without, before giving in and holding him, reluctantly wrapping my arms around his waist. "I'm sorry." He repeated. Somehow, though I knew everything was far from being perfect, I felt as though I was home for the first time.

**AN: Again, I apologize for not sticking to my new policy, but I promise I will not miss an update from now on. My big surprise for you all is that I will update once more this week, in order to make up for the one I missed. Plus, I will lower the review quota significantly for a second update.**

**So, you will definitely get the next chapter some time this week.**

**And you will definitely get the one after that by January 15, but...**

**3 Reviews gets it by January 8**

**5 Reviews gets it by January 1**

**8 Reviews gets it by December 25**

**10 Reviews gets it by December 20**

**And there you have it! Again, I apologize, but I hope you all will forgive me.**


	23. AN: Sorry, not a chapter

**AN: I QUIT!!!!!**

**Not really, but on a serious note, my life is getting incredibly hectic for me right now, and I am finding that I just don't have time to continue writing my stories the way I used to. I have part of the next chapter done, but I am not able to find the inspiration to finish with all of the stress in my life.**

**That being said, I would like to say that I am taking a break from all of my stories for a while, at least until I find the time to get a couple of chapters done for each story. Do NOT, under any circumstances, consider this to be me quitting, because as I have said before, I never will quit a story. I just have a heavy workload in school especially this trimester, but next trimester it may calm down a bit.**

**Please don't abandon me, though I realize I don't deserve to have my stories read after this, but do know that the next chapters will be up eventually, I just don't know when. But, I wouldn't expect them for at least another month. The latest being summer, but I highly doubt my hiatus will last that long.**

**Again, please forgive me, and if you have any suggestions about the direction you think my stories should take, just let me know and I will try to take your suggestions into consideration.**


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